Ek Villain: Its in the Plot

There is no doubt that, “Ek Villain” in recent times has been one of the films which have created a lot of curiosity through its trailer and its chartbuster music only added to the hype. Mohit Suri, who is known to direct Thrillers, had last directed a love story Ashiqui 2, has tried to blend the two genre with his latest film.

 

The film is rumoured to be a take-off a Korean film with desi love tadka. “Ek Villain” is a story of 2 antagonists Guru and Rakesh – how their love makes them choose a different path from what they ought to be and how they crisis-cross each other’s path only  to make an unforgettable impact. While the basic premise is interesting, it is the screenplay that falls flat. The film begins on a high, and then juggles between the past and present, rather struggles to keep the interest of the audience going. With zero twist in the plot and audience knowing who is the villain within first 20 minutes of the movie, the film rests upon its lead characters and moments between them to keep the film going along with its music popping up in between. The film neither scores as a thriller not really up there as a love story; however the film has lot of blood gore.

However the film has 3  high points – the characterization of the main protagonists or antagonists in this case, the performances and its soulful music, which probably just add up to make it a one- time watch. The romantic moment between Guru and Ayesha adds to the emotional base of the movie and provides the much needed lighter moments in this otherwise dark story. The irony of the film lies in its character- while one turns in a way hero for his girl trying to be a villain and the other turns villain trying to be hero in front of his wife’s eyes.

 

Shraddha Kapoor is delightful to watch on-screen and oozes her own charm and innocence. However when it comes to acting, she is at best average. But she has a lovely mellifluous voice. Aamna Sharif, as Ritesh’s wife, surprises with a spirited performance. But its the male leads who saves the day-  Ritesh Deshmukh, who is known for his comic timing, gets an author backed role of a psychologically challenged person and he kills it totally with his menacing act, literally and figuratively. While Ritesh’s performance has been critically acclaimed wide across, I somehow feel its Siddharth, who holds the film together, by delivering an intense silent performance. The expression in his eyes  almost depicts the graph of the story, from anger to hope to love to pathos to despair and back to hope again.

 Mohit Suri yet again manages to show case his talent with great music, good characterization and performances in his film, but as usual in this one too his story and screenplay ironically becomes the main Villain.