Director: Meghna Gulzar
Daayra Movie Review Summary:
DAAYRA is about two cops with different ways of doing their job.
A young girl named Ragini (Pragati Mishra) vanishes on a highway.Her mom, Parvati (Kshitee Jog), and brother Kabir (Bhavesh Babbani) go to the police, but they don’t take the case seriously.The next day, Ragini’s burned body is found in a lonely area.The case gets a lot of media attention, putting pressure on the Teerthana police.DCP Raman Kumar (Prithviraj Sukumaran) is given the task of finding the culprits.In a few days, he and his team arrest four men.Before they can be taken to court, they are shot dead.Raman and his team say the men tried to run and even shot at them.When the police fired back, the accused lost their lives.While the country celebrates their deaths, some people believe the killing was staged.With heavy pressure from the Human Rights Department, DCP Ajooni Kohli (Kareena Kapoor Khan) of the Internal Vigilance Unit is called in to lead an SIT and find out the truth.She goes to Suryapur, where the crime happened.Ajooni is strict and doesn’t have any bias.She’s determined to find out what really happened and whether Raman and his team are guilty.What happens next is the rest of the film.
Daayra Movie Story Review:
The story is inspired by a real-life event, and the makers also took inspiration from similar incidents to create an engaging tale.
The screenplay is interesting and has some powerful dramatic moments.However, it gets a bit confusing at some points and doesn’t have a strong ending.The dialogues add to the drama, but there could have been some sharper lines to make the impact stronger.
Meghna Gulzar’s direction is good.
She uses a similar approach to her earlier film, TALVAR.She starts right away and doesn’t waste time.The way the two teams’ conversations are intercut is smart, and viewers gradually learn what happened.She also challenges some common assumptions in the second half.People expect the story to go one way, especially with the accused’s story, but it takes an unexpected turn.Some scenes are really memorable, like Ajooni reenacting the crime scene and finding inconsistencies, Parvati waiting at the police station, and the press conference after the encounter.The intermission scene is also worth mentioning.
On the other hand, the film becomes a bit slow after the break.
Sometimes, it’s hard to tell if the story is in the past or present.The way Ragini is tricked is hard to believe, especially with a truck involved.The biggest problem is that the film lacks a real climax.It ends too quickly.People expect a big confrontation between the two main characters, but nothing like that happens.When the credits roll, it can be surprising because the film doesn’t deliver the dramatic payoff people expect.This affects the overall impact of the movie a lot.
Movie Review: DAAYRA impresses with its idea and acting, but it struggles in the second half and the ending.
Daayra Movie Review Performances:
Kareena Kapoor Khan gives a quiet but strong performance.
Unlike many female cops in recent movies, she isn’t depressed or addicted, which makes the character fresh.Prithviraj Sukumaran is excellent.His speaking is great, but watch how he conveys his feelings through his eyes.Kshitee Jog shines, especially in the first half.Bhavesh Babbani also does a good job.
Biswapati Sarkar, played by Commissioner Prakash Anand, does a good job, but his comic character is so strong that it's hard to picture him as a Commissioner or Prithviraj's boss.
Jitendra Joshi, who plays Inspector Karad, is always reliable.Brij Bhushan Shukla, as Inspector Bala, who refuses to file an FIR, makes a big impression.Upendra Chauhan as Vishal Mishra, part of team Ajooni, along with Ipshita Singh as Aarti, also part of team Ajooni, and the actor who plays Gopal all give good support.Trupti Khamkar, as SI Jyoti from team DCP, is memorable in the chase scene.Sandesh Kulkarni as Head Constable Vasu, Saksham Dayma as Inspector Daya, Manoj Sharma as Constable Prasad Nayar and the driver, Ram Diwakar as Raju, Ashutosh Kumar Gupta as Bablu, Abdul Mani as Mani, and Aditya Kumar as Mastan all perform well.Achint Kaur as Gomti Pujari and Kanwaljit Singh as Judge Kohli are impressive in their cameo roles.
Music and other technical aspects of the movie Daayra:
The only song, the title track by Amit Trivedi, is forgettable.
However, Ketan Sodha's background score is very powerful and adds a lot to several scenes.
Saurabh Goswami's cinematography is well done, especially with the use of close-up shots.
Parvez Shaikh's action scenes are minimal and not overly violent.Subrata Chakraborty, Amit Ray's production design, and Karishma Sharma's costumes are realistic and feel like real life.Charu Shree Roy and Meghna Gulzar's editing is clever, especially the intercut scenes.However, it could have been sharper after the break.
Daayra Movie Review Conclusion:
Overall, DAAYRA is based on an interesting idea and has strong performances from Kareena Kapoor Khan and Prithviraj Sukumaran.
However, the second half feels stretched, and more importantly, the lack of a satisfying ending reduces the overall effect.At the box office, the film hasn't generated much buzz, and it will need strong word-of-mouth from the audience to make an impact.
