SADAK 2

To say that Sadak 2 is a bit of a mixed bag would be a shred of an understatement. When it was announced, the movie indeed captured our imagination as it meant Mahesh Bhatt’s return to direction after a hiatus. However, overtime, it got drawn into controversy over the nepotism debate, particularly in the wake of Sushant Singh Rajput’s untimely demise. It needs to be noted here that all the four leads are products of nepotism. Nevertheless, every movie deserves to be judged on its own pros and cons, and here we are with our review, strictly based on merit.

Sadak 2 starts off on a good, intriguing note. An exorcism kind of event happening in the middle of the forest that Aaryaa, played by Alia Bhatt, foils. However, it soon gets drawn into some predictable writing, punctuated by some good performances (Sanjay Dutt as Ravi, Alia Bhatt), some over-the top-ones like Jisshu Sengupta and some almost nil, like that of Aditya Roy Kapur's (Vishal). 

The plot is fairly simple. Three troubled individuals (Dutt, Bhatt and Kapur) are brought together in a trip. All three experience their share of heartaches, none matching that of the audience. Do they reach their destination and complete what they set out to do? What happens at the end? And more importantly, how many survive? No spoilers, now. 

Alia Bhatt exhibits chirpy acting. Aditya looks jaded and suffers from a sort of “Aashiqui” hangover. Except sporting an impish smile, he doesn’t do anything much. All the lead characters exhibit neurotic behaviour like attempting suicide, cutting their hands, smashing their head onto a table, etc. A fair amount of caution as far as trigger warning is considered, to be undertaken. 

One is also not able to understand as to why our filmmakers rarely seem to get “people coming out of jail” scenes right. With his perfect hair and perfect make-up and perfect clothes, and not having aged a single day, Aditya looks like he just returned from a spa vacation while we are told he has been in prison for five years!

Even the twists – father gunning after his own daughter’s life – isn't something we hadn’t seen on the screen before. Neither is the step-mother not being evil. The “Ashram” and “Godman” angle is really getting tiring now. 

BGM is among the strengths of Sadak 2, which aren't many. The score is gently pulsating, at times. The number of songs and their placement make the movie feel like a musical, at times. Though Sadak 2 is just a little over two hours, you couldn’t help but feel it could have been trimmed better, considering the slow pace. Picturisation leans towards the darker tone. 

All in all, Mahesh Bhatt’s return to filmdom could have done with better writing amongst other things. Dutt and Bhatt’s performances are really good, though.