Sikandar review: Jaded Salman desperately plays to gallery in joyless film

The raja is so busy setting the world right and winning the hearts of people that he has no time to shower attention on his lovely, young wife in his palace. She woos him with singing soul-stirring Lata Mangeshkar songs like Lag Ja Gale, and ensures he remains safe from his enemies but his heart beats more for the people of his kingdom Rajkot, for Dharavi and for Mumbaikkars.

For who knows, these people may come in handy when he wants to become an MLA or MP tomorrow! Yes, that’s the warning Bollywood star Salman Khan gives in his latest film ‘Sikandar’, in which he plays the role of a magnanimous raja, Sanjay Raja. This film released in theatres today ahead of Eid.

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Murugadoss in Bollywood

While roughing up the villain of this mindless action drama, a nasty minister called Pradhan (essayed by a bald Sathayaraj), he warns him not to mess with him too much or he can easily become an MLA or MP and give them hell. Not a PM or a CM (thankfully!) but an MLA for sure, says a confident Khan.

That warning seems to scare the villain so much that we don’t hear from him anymore. Like it possibly would worry any thinking citizen of this country.

Khan’s outing with South director AR Murugadoss (whose oeuvre includes Ghajini, Thupakki and Kaththi), turns out to be a bewildering, chaotic ride. A journey to nowhere land and back, valiantly carrying the ageing Khan on its shoulders.

There are many mind-blowing action scenes, centred around Khan most of the time, as he asks his bouncers to stand back while he fights with 10 or 20 goons all by his lonesome self. Sometimes, he is Parshuraman with an axe, then he seems to have a spear or a trishul (deadly looking weapons soaking with blood are Murgadoss’s speciality).

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Trademark swag

Though, Khan looks jaded and worn out, he manages to pull of his trademark swag. As he flips his silver, chunky chain around his neck backwards, cracks a few skulls, spears a few men and smashes their heads into car windows and bonnets, he still manages to draw whistles.

‘Sikandar’ also brims over with his pithy one-liners which may have some political conotations. ‘No one is above the law even actors and ministers have gone to jail’ or his taunt to a corrupt police officer - ‘No laundry can clean the stain on your police uniform, go and take a holy dip in the Ganges to clean your conscience'.

But this one liner made his fans sit up: 'I hear a lot of people are looking for me and want to get me, but it’s all a matter of me just having to turn around.' (A message to the gang issuing death threats to him?)

Murugadoss is so busy engaged in paying obeisance to the Khan persona, like he did with superstar Rajnikanth in Darbar, he completely loses the plot. It is clear that he has not paid any attention to the storyline or the script. No character, including the main villain Pradhan and his son (played by Prateik Babbar) or three other main characters, including Kajal Aggarwal, get any backstory.

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Just props

‘Sikandar’ meanders without direction and when the action dips, minister Pradhan swings by again to rev up the momentum. All the other actors are just props be it the talented South actor Kishore, who appears as an inspector out to nail Khan but suddenly has a change of heart after a tongue-lashing from him; or Sharman Joshi, who is Khan's trusted lieutenant, and ends up looking awkward most of the time.

Rashmika Mandanna, who plays Salman Khan’s wife (Saisri), blows in like a fresh breeze in this beaten-to-death formulaic drama. Unfortunately, she disappears after a few scenes. Later, she just flits in and out in a few flashback scenes.

In Bollywood, desperate for miracles, she is the proverbial luck charm, which Salman may surely need for this film. Maybe, the superstars should just stop looking to the South for salavation.

Music composer Pritam Chakraborty has no memorable songs lined up here for Khan like he had for the superstar in ‘Bodyguard’ or in the delightful ‘Bajrang Bhaijaan’. The saving grace is a colourful, choreographed dance number ‘Bambam Bhole Shambu’, which seems to have a peppy beat.

In this song, Rashmika repeats some of her ‘Saami Saami’ steps, which had the audience whooping in delight.

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Santhosh Narayanan's music

The background score by Santhosh Narayanan, which involves a rap number is used just to elevate Salman Khan to another stratosphere (no matter he is already floating there looking ghostly and unreal). The lines in the rap number, ‘No throne left to reign’ and ‘Storms rise in his wake' , which play out as Khan whips up dust in the fighting scenes, seem laughable.

Considering that so much attention has been given to the action scenes, cinematographer S Thirunavakarasu has pulled no punches into making them watchable.

Salman Khan fans may just trek to the cinemas to watch ‘Sikandar’. But, even for them, this film with no substance will stretch their patience.