Radhe is an action film directed by Prabhu Deva, that has Salman Khan and Disha Patani in the lead roles while Randeep Hooda, Bharath, Jackie Shroff, and Megha Akash play crucial supporting roles among others. The film is a remake of the Korean film, The Outlaws. It's produced under the banners Salman Khan Films and Zee Studios.
Radhe, played by Salman Khan is a swashbuckling cop in Mumbai, known for his 97 encounters and 23 transfers in a span of 10 years. He comes out of suspension to bust a drug mafia, led by Rana (played by Randeep Hooda). He promises a school student that he will clean up the city before their board exams. Whether he manages to fulfill that promise forms the rest of the story.
A film set in Mumbai, with a relentless cop deciding to free a city from drugs is the plot line and it's hard to not get reminded of Rajinikanth's Darbar. Like Darbar, this film too banks on Salman Khan's screen presence and star value for most of its runtime. And Salman doesn't fail to deliver. His build also lends authenticity to the fight scenes .
He has a formidable foe in the form of Randeep Hooda who gets into the shoes of his character quite comfortably. The face off scenes or the fight scenes between them stand out and are a delight to watch. But apart from these two, there is hardly any scope for other actors to perform. Megha Akash and Bharath chip in with useful performances but they don't seem to make an impact, because of the poor characterization.
Disha Patani appears as Diya, a model who appears in various advertisements. She plays Salman's love interest. These romantic portions serve as speed breakers to a screenplay that is otherwise racing ahead. In addition to it, the romance lacks a heart and serves as a cue to break out into a song. The songs are stylish, and a few of them are catchy. No doubt about it, but they are too many in number.
The background score, on the other hand, works to an extent despite being loud in parts. The camerawork also lends a useful hand, and creates a sense of urgency in a lot of places. So, technically the film might not be great but has the bare minimum to make you sit through the crisp duration of less than 2 hours.
The film would have definitely worked better on the big screen, if not for the pandemic out here. Salman breaking the fourth wall repeatedly in the first few minutes is enough to send the fans into berserk mode. The small screen doesn't do justice to the content.
Radhe has a lot of flaws on the filmmaking side, but what keeps it going is Salman's swagger and the action sequences, even though the film lacks a proper emotional base. Miraculously, the lack of emotions does not affect the engagement. And Prabhu Deva keeps giving us a lot of them. Undeniably, this is a plate of biriyani for Salman fans for this Eid.