'Khufiya' Movie Review: The world of ‘Khufiya’ is covered with the shrouds of betrayal, love, and curiosity. From one’s daring for the country to another’s love, this mysterious chapter is filled with intrigue, revolving around a Bangladeshi agent’s story, which involves the RAW finding a mole in their agency. Inspired by Amar Bhushan’s book, it presents a fictionalized account of the case of Rabinder Singh, a former RAW agent suspected of being a CIA mole. In 2004, the latter escaped from India despite closely being surveilled by his superiors.

Plot:

The film revolves around Krishna Mehra (Tabu), a RAW agent assigned to track down a mole in the agency (Ali Fazal) who sells India’s defense secrets to an American agency. While living her dual identity, she also falls in love with a Bangladeshi agent, who is next killed by the Defense Minister of the country. Following the incident, the agency keeps a close look at the RAW mole’s family with eventually the wife (Wamiqa Gabbi) questioning his patriotism and integrity.

Watch the official trailer of the film attached below:

Review:

Vishal Bharadwaj and Tabu’s collaboration always excites considering the duo has delivered several intriguing hits in the past. The latest venture ‘Khufiya’ however falls short and flat to meet the ends of the film with its half-baked storyline. The director tries to explore all possible subjects, from romance to betrayal in this modern spy-thriller, however this time his vision seems to be very obvious to witness for the audience.

What Works For The Film:

‘Khufiya’ is a slow-burning film that unravels the details of the plot quickly and never in one scene exaggerates itself. The twists and turns in the film merely come and go which is engaging at times. The only saviour in the film is the sane acting skills of the lead star cast which is minimal and upfront. The involvement of two many characters and a confusing plotline is also ignored by the makers keeping the details basic and bearable.

What Did Not Work:

The predictable storyline leaves no curiosity to watch the scenes. It seems like watching a period drama instead of a spy-thriller in which the twists and revelations are highly obvious and leave no catch. The storyline of the film falls so flat that it does not give a chance to the actors to prove their prowess, with no powerful dialogues/ The director just wastes two gems of Bollywood i.e. Tabu and Ali Fazal.

Performances:

Tabu as Krishna Mehra tries to hold the ground in this thriller, but keeps her expressions low throughout the film. From engaging with her lover to killing her opponent, Tabu loses her acting prowess in the film with no impactful dialogues and the same tense expression carrying it all along. The power of her scenes holding a cigarette is lost in the meager script which becomes a bore mainly in the second half of the film.

Ali Fazal seems to be lost throughout the film. The actor just roams around the halls and in his car, without delivering a sly look. He seems to lose his intensity as he just acts as a pawn for the government. The director appears to have underestimated the acting skills of Ali Fazal, as he is made to essay the lead roles in stories, whereas this time without any strong backdrop, Vishal Bharadwaj just wastes his skills and power.

 

 

 

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Final Verdict:

The 157-minute film is a remarkable piece of ‘bore’ with no interesting and engaging theme or plot. The characters of Vishal Bharadwaj are either sitting in surveillance rooms or casually walking in the hall with everything in place, but nothing seems to work in the film. As intriguing as the title Khufiya is, it all becomes annoying over time as the venture falls flat with no big revelations and goosebumps. Vishal Bharadwaj has successfully managed to deliver a perfect example of a thriller that lacks in delivery of ‘thrills’ mixed with a bland storyline and dead characters.