Kadak Singh Review - This Financial Crime Thriller Is Worth Your Money & Time

Kadak Singh Review: Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's Hindi-language thriller, Kadak Singh, stars Pankaj Tripathi, Parvathy Thiruvothu, Sanjana Sanghi, Jaya Ahsan, Dilip Shankar, and Jogi Mallang. After scoring pink grades with Pink (2016) and getting lost with Lost (2023), Aniruddha has his third attempt with Kadak Singh. On a funny note, his film's titles have decided their fate already. Taking my logic forward, Kadak Singh is a KADAK thriller. The idea is a bit predictable, but the way he has translated the suspense through characters and the chronological order of the events is what makes this one an engaging and gripping watch. So what if the idea is old? It's all about keeping you hooked for 2 hours, and be assured, Kadak Singh has a strong grip on the narrative that doesn't let you move from your seat.Kadak Singh is about AK Srivastava (Pankaj Tripathi), a DFC officer (Department of Financial Commission), who has attempted suicide and is admitted to the hospital. We learn that he has retrograde amnesia and can't recall many important things, including why he attempted suicide. He can't even recognise his daughter, Sakshi (Sanjana Sanghi). Sakshi starts telling him the story to the best of her knowledge, and AK is all ears along with the nurse, Miss Kannan (Parvathy). Sakshi's story puts AK  in a questionable light, while Arjun's (Paresh Pahuja) angle brings him back to the good zone. There are two more versions of AK's story, one from his girlfriend, Naina (Jaya Ahsan), and another from his boss, Tyagi (Dilip Shankar). AK begins analysing all the situations to remember exactly what happened. Was that really an attempt of suicide or murder? How will AK prove it his memory is lost? Kadak Singh will leave you with an answer sheet exactly after 2 hours.Kahaani, Airlift, and Raid fame Ritesh Shah has written a solid screenplay for Kadak Singh. The film has a standard runtime of 2 hours and does not bore you even for a minute. That's the best way to win your viewer's attention, and the writer and screenwriter have done exactly the same here. Kadak Singh barely has any loose ends if we are to discuss the reliability and functionality of the storyline. I mean, what's there that's not believable? The only thing one can argue about, and even I found it problematic, is the funny and careless behaviour of the characters under such strained and serious circumstances. Which amnesia patient can joke about his life when he is admitted to the hospital, and for god's sake, he isn't even taking a minute of the story seriously? Then suddenly he is all immersed in it, and the next moment he is kidding about it. What's the play here? Also, the nurse's character—what was that? Which nurse actually gets so interested in a patient's life and does so much research and investigation? Her talk never looked like that of a nurse or a friend. She was like a puppet. So, there are a few hiccups like these, but it's pretty digestible as a whole dish.Pankaj Tripathi is known for his acting skills in Bollywood, and he shows them again here. I don't know how many times he has left me in awe, and I am just pushing that number up by one more, even though I don't have a count for that. Sanjana Sanghi looks beautiful and shines in some emotional scenes, but as always, her voice is the problem. Jaya Ahsan is attractive as a Bengali woman in her Bollywood debut, while Paresh Pahuja is fine. I don't know how dare they waste an actress like Parvathy Thiruvothu for such a side-kicked and badly written role. However, there are many surprises (pleasant ones) for you in the form of Dilip Shankar, Jogi Mallang, Varun Buddhadev, Rajan Modi, Anandya Sengupta, Gulshankara Khatun, and others.Kadak Singh scripts a good investigation drama we have all been used to for years. It's just that we get to see it in a new form where the main protagonist is a patient. The film lacks humour despite several attempts to bring laughter. Tyagi tells, "Be patient." "I am already patient," AK replies. That's not funny, in my opinion. The technical aspects are good, including cinematography editing, dialogues, and production design. Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's direction demands two hours of your life to transport you to Kadak Singh's, where every character has a secret or a problem, or at least they pretend to have it. Like mentioned before, the humour kills the fun of some intense scenes, and that somehow gives you a break from a thrilling narrative, and it's not in the film's favour. Nevertheless, the film has enough plot and intriguing elements that deserve to be watched, along with some fine performances from the ensemble cast.