Brahmastra - Ambitious but Moderate

Rating:2.75/5

Directed by Ayan Mukerji

Written by Ayan Mukerji

Dialogue by Hussain Dalal

Produced by Karan Johar

Cast Amitabh Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Mouni Roy, Nagarjuna                     Akkineni

Cinematography V. Manikandan, Pankaj Kumar, Sudeep Chatterjee, Vikash                                             Nowlakha, Patrick Duroux

Edited by Prakash Kurup

Music by Simon Franglen

Songs Pritam Production companies Star Studios, Dharma Productions

Shiva (Ranbir Kapoor) is a DJ. He meets  Isha (Alia Bhatt) and they both fall in love. Shiva has visions which bring him into the clash with some evil powers that leadd to an Astraverse. Junoon (Mouni Roy) who is on a quest to create an all-powerful ‘Astra’ fights with Shiva. How is Shiva related to all this and can he stop Junoon? What is his connection with Brahmastra forms the rest of the story.

The movie has an excellent plot which is very interesting with the backdrop of supernatural elements and mythological touch.

Ayan Mukherji aimed to create a sweeping Astraverse using our history and mythology on a scale never before seen in Indian Cinema and he succeeds partially. 

The first half is mostly a half-baked love story between the two leads. The clunky writing and the horrible dialogues never quite let you get attached to the characters. SRK starts the movie with a bang and Nagarjuna gets an excellent moment before the interval. Amitabh Bachchan is under-utilized.

Ranbir and Alia’s charm and chemistry is what keeps the movie from sinking. Ranbir was his usual self in love scenes and looked a bit odd in action sequences at first but later he seemed good. Mouni Roy was Okay.

The makers of Brahmastra have promised us a spectacle and they deliver on that part. The visuals for the most part are dazzling. It is meant to be watched on the biggest screen possible and 3D is used effectively. 

Main leads’ chemistry, visuals, background score and the star cameos at important moments are what works for the movie, but the movie's biggest drawbacks are the flimsy dialogues at parts and the clunky editing, which never let the movie breathe the right emotion that it had to. It had its high adrenaline-pumping moments at regular intervals and ends with a melodramatic climax. 

 

Overall, the movie can be enjoyed but one should watch it with lowered expectations.