'Vikram Vedha' film review: Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan brew an aromatic remake of the Tamil film

Vikram Vedha is one of the latest and most anticipated action-thrillers to be remade from Tamil for Hindi film viewers. Written and directed by duo Pushkar-Gayatri, the film is about a tough cop Vikram (Saif Ali Khan) who sets out to track and chase a dreaded gangster Vedha (Hrithik Roshan). What unfolds is a cat-and-mouse chase, where Vedha - a master storyteller helps Vikram peel layers through a series of stories leading to thought-provoking moral ambiguities.

Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan's film takes the lesser traversed route as the protagonist and antagonist take a detour from a physical to a mental war. Vikram Vedha also marks the career milestone for Hrithik Roshan as the 25th film. Hrithik is returning to the screen after his blockbuster film WAR. The actor pours his soul to leave his distinct mark as Vedha.

The conversation between Vikram (Saif) and Vedha (Hrithik) is casual and impactful. Thankfully, the dialogues are not ‘filmy’ and help to further cement the storyline. The camaraderie, though, is unmissable.
Hrithik Roshan’s performance further stabilizes the script. He is the soul of the film, although there is scope for improvement in diction consistency. Saif Ali Khan portrayed Vikram with utmost dedication. Saif has always performed characters with grey shades with utmost brilliance, and that perception in the minds of the audience triggers inertia to accept him in the role of a righteous officer.

Rohit Sharaf is seen essaying the role of Vedha's brother. He does justice to what is offered. Sharib Hashmi is brilliant and fits in seamlessly. The script doesn’t offer Radhika Apte a role suiting her caliber but she manages to etch her name to the scenes offered.

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Extra points to Pushkar and Gayatri for writing and directing it without burdening the script with unnecessary masala. The action scenes are a visual treat. The length of the film is one of its biggest drawbacks but the storyline and performances manage to keep the audience engaged.

For those who haven’t watched the original featuring R Madhavan (Vikram) and Vijay Sethupathi (Vedha), the Hindi remake makes for a good watch. For those who have relished the original Tamil film, there is hardly any incentive offered by the film but to overcome the perils of reading the subtitles. However, since mushrooming of OTT platforms, films like Vikram Vedha have performed far better on the platforms than on screens. Hopefully, Vikram Vedha would be able to surmount this challenge.

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