Movie Review: Sadak 2
Movie Review: ‘Sadak 2’
Rating: 2/5
Director: Mahesh Bhatt
Cast: Alia Bhatt, Sanjay Dutt, Aditya Roy Kapur, Pooja Bhatt, Makarand Deshpande.
After her mother Shakuntala Desai’s death under mysterious circumstances, the Desai Group of Industries scion Aarya (Alia Bhatt) vows to avenge the murder and bring the culprits to justice. And, in order to honour her mother’s last wish, Aarya embarks on a journey to Kailash and the story of ‘Sadak 2’ unfolds. Follow Spotlife Asia for the latest entertainment and lifestyle news.
Mahesh Bhatt is known for sensitive films like Arth, Naam or Zakhm. Even the original Sadak (1991) made by him almost thirty years ago, had a soul. It had powerful performances buoyed by great music. Everything that can go wrong with making a movie, has gone wrong here.
‘Sadak 2’ starts off with a grim, almost melancholic setting, where the hopeless protagonist Ravi is tying a rope around his neck and talking to his deceased wife Pooja about their impending reunion in the afterlife. But the fan that he is hanging on to comes crashing down, and Ravi has to live another day. While listening to ‘Hum Tere Bin Kahin Reh Nahin Paate’ (such nostalgia, much wow!) in his garage and planning yet another exit, his door bolts open and a hyper Aarya storms in demanding her three-month advance booking be honoured. Thus, begins a journey of random twists-and-turns, both on the road and off it, and a screenplay that goes down various routes and eventually hits a dead-end.
Bhatt and his fellow writer Suhrita Sengupta have come up with a convoluted plot that doesn’t actually go anywhere. Sadak 2 has a horror film feel to it for some strange reason, what with Makarand Deshpande and his acolytes seen indulging in some arcane rituals which wouldn’t have looked out of place in an Omen film.
Be it Jisshu Sen Gupta, Gulshan Grover, Aaditya Roy Kapur or even the ever-reliable Alia Bhatt, have a difficult time adjusting to the shambles around them. Alia gamely carries on but her efforts go in vain because the faulty screenplay is of no use to the actors at all. Sanjay Dutt still retains a towering presence and stoically gives his all as he tries to salvage this sinking ship.
