Mission Majnu Review - Practically Weak, Emotionally & Patriotically Powerful

Shantanu Bagchi's romantic spy drama, Mission Majnu, stars Sidharth Malhotra and Rashmika Mandanna in the lead roles. The film is inspired by a heroic secret mission that took place after India's 1971 war victory over Pakistan and the nuclear bomb test in 1974. One funny thing about the films inspired by true events and real people is that if nobody was left alive, then who the hell told all the details of these events? No, it's not a Jack Sparrow quote from Pirates of the Caribbean, but I'm curious to know the source material. Amrit Sagar's 1971 (2007) also left me with the same question. Should we really believe the stories as being all true, or should we just enjoy it as a film? I am sure the actors, producers, and directors will choose the latter option, so let's accept that and review Mission Majnu. So yes, Mission Majnu has a good emotional and patriotic value without any of the larger-than-life action sequences we usually see in war movies, but let me warn you that the practical value is very low.Mission Manju is about RAW's most daring operation, which took place right in the heart of Pakistan. RAW agent Amandeep Singh, aka Tariq Ali (Sidharth Malhotra), works as a tailor in Pakistan. He falls in love with a blind girl, Nasreen (Rashmika Mandanna), and marries her, which also helps him to create a cover. Soon after India's successful nuclear test, the Pakistani government decides to create their own atom bomb. After arresting the Prime Minister of the Country, the police general takes over the change of government and carries out the nuclear mission without coming into India's sight. Amandeep and his two companions try to find out details and stop Pakistan from their mission, but will it be that easy for the spies that are being hunted by the cops? Check out the heroic tale of Indian spies who sacrificed everything for the country in Mission Majnu.Mission Majnu is indeed a lovable story and will make every Indian feel proud of the unknown heroes and their bravery. While doing so, it runs the risk of being overly heroic. The cinematic Liberty is literally destroyed in the action and chase sequences. Cops can't even shoot a man from a meter's distance, but that's okay because he is a hero. Running on a running railway is so easy, and even the jumping part is fine, but how does the train suddenly stop? The climax sequence at the airport comes with zero authenticity. MM was looking like a real film till the intermission part and had literally matched many good spy dramas that have been made over the years. Suddenly, the trajectory path changed in the second half to compromise reliability factors. But don't worry; the emotional and patriotic appeal is too high in the end to distract you quickly.Sidharth Malhotra's recent film choices have been better than what he was doing 4-5 years ago. Mission Manju can be termed one of his best works so far. Unlike previous occasions, here he gets a different dialect, personality, and sort of versatility to wear. He does better than he did before. Does that excite you, Sid fans? I hope you have a blast then. On the other side, Rashmika Mandanna gets out of that typical lover-girl image and delivers a promising performance from the actor's point of view. Kumud Mishra is the boss at whatever he does, and Mission Majnu proves it once again. Sharib Haashmi, Kumud Mishra, Mir Sarwar, Parmeet Sethi, Zakir Hussain, Shishir Sharma, Ashwath Bhatt, and Rajit Kapur's support as a unit is just fantastic.In terms of the technical aspects, the mission is somewhat incomplete. Creating the 70s era was a task, and in some scenes the crew has done well, but after a while you start noticing glitches in them. Repetitive frames and locations stop exciting you, but then, you have to bear it for the next 100 minutes. Also, why is the film so slow in the beginning? Even though I liked the music of Janda and the chemistry of Sidharth and Rashmika, why do you have to show it at the beginning and spoil the mood of a "spy-thriller"? Turning a spy thriller into a spy drama is a big mistake, but sometimes mistakes make things easy. Ko Maa Kehte Hain will definitely bring tears to your eyes, no matter how stone-hearted person you are. Shantanu Bagchi is definitely a director to look out for in future projects, as he has done well here. Yes, a few blunders could have been avoided, and like I said, it lacks authenticity, but it does provide a powerful patriotic saga. Overall, a gold turned into silver, but it's still a jewel after all.