Rating: B
Dir: Nikhil Nagesh Bhat
Star: Lakshya, Raghav Juyal, Abhishek Chauhan, Tanya Maniktala
This is closer to what I expected from Bullet Train, than Bullet Train actually delivered. While both are action films set up and down the length of a train, as it hurtles through the countryside, there’s a much greater sense of enclosed space here. The Japanese train on which Brad Pitt operated seemed about the width of a jumbo jet on occasion. This Indian locomotive is closely confined, to the point of cramped, giving the hero, army commando Amrit Rathod (Lakshya), barely enough room to swing a sharp, pointy object. The film is basically an exercise in finding ways to work around this limitation, and it’s remarkable how well Bhat mixes things up.
The plot sees Amrit board the train seeking to follow his girlfriend Tulika (Maniktala) to New Delhi, with the aim of preventing her from going into an arranged marriage against her will. Such soap opera considerations quickly take a back seat after a gang of robbers hijack the train. That’s yer plot. Initially, it seems fairly humdrum: a competent Die Hard knockoff, with some decent (very) close-combat action. But then something happens which I did not expect, and is likely unprecedented in any Indian film I’ve seen. The film’s title appears in large, red font: Amrit goes berserk thereafter. We’re talking The Night Comes for Us levels of brutality and gore, which again, is not something you would expect from Bollywood. As railway movies go, it’s nearer Train to Busan.
Beyond the splatter, there are other memorable moments, such as Amrit stringing up his victim’s corpses, so the remaining criminals have to push past their friends and relatives. It appears train robbing in India is very much a family affair as well. For instance, gang leader Beni is father to the most brutal of its members, Fani (Juyal), though their relationship is hardly paternal. It does have some elements which I did find confusing. There are armed cops on the train, yet they appear to be entirely asleep for the first half, and are basically useless. The layout of the carriages is sometimes unclear too. [Sidenote: action choreographer Oh Se-yeong worked on the not dissimilar Snowpiercer, which had a better handle on its train geography]
Regardless, if you don’t feel like cheering when Amrit growls, “They’ll get off the train for sure – but only for their funeral”, I recommend a medical check-up. For this is action, stripped down to its barest bones, and is largely the better for it. While Lakshya is making his feature debut, he’s well experienced in television, and has smouldering charisma to burn. Fani makes a fine villain too, sneering at his father, “Where is this maternal love coming from? Foster a dog or a cat.” Unsurprisingly, the rights to remake the film have already been sold to Hollywood, and 87Eleven Entertainment, the production company behind John Wick. They’ve got their work cut out to make something which will be an improvement on this.