Kesari Movie Review: Akshay Kumar Bring a Holi blockbuster

Kesari  Movie Review: Akshay Kumar Bring a Holi blockbuster with his Battle of Saragarhi

Kesari

At the same time, Kesari has its light moments, which provide a welcome relief from the intense battlefield sequences, which form its core.

Akshay Kumar is the proverbial glue that holds his regiment and the film together. He effortlessly switches from the emotional scenes to the high-intensity war sequences. Parineeti Chopra, who plays Havildar Ishar Singh's wife, has barely any scenes to speak of.

Kesari begins with a slide saying that though the film is based on real events, it is "a work of pure fiction" with numerous creative liberties. This is indeed the case when Akshay Kumar's superstar aura takes centrestage, to the point of pushing willing suspension of disbelief to its limits.

Picture this: 10,000 Afghan troops are marching towards Saragarhi, with several of them beating the war drum. However, it takes only one man playing the dhol to send them into an awed silence.

Havildar Ishar Singh also seems to be invincible; a gunshot to the chest from close quarters, a sword through his stomach and deadly injuries cannot take him down.

In an already heroic tale, such over-the-top displays look inauthentic and out of place. But then, it's Akshay Kumar.

Though Kesari is set in the 19th century, its commentary is extremely relevant at a time when religious fundamentalism is on the rise. A mullah instigating the Pathans to attack the 'infidels' in the name of religion is questioned.

"Aap kyun baar baar Allah ko beech mein laate hai? Use insaan ke katl aur jung se kya lena dena?" a tribal leader asks the mullah, who admits that religion is nothing but a weapon of instigation in times of unrest. "Jung bina hathyaron ke nahi lade jaate. Aap apna hathyar istemaal karein, aur mujhe mera hathyar istemaal karne dein," the mullah replies.

Though the first half of Kesari takes its own sweet time to build up, how Havildar Ishar Singh and his men make the impossible possible is every bit worth your time. Among the songs, B Praak's stirring rendition of Teri Mitti stands out.

Kesari is the rousing patriotic film that Akshay Kumar fans wait for all year round. But it is a lot more than just that and deserves a watch this Holi.

4 out of 5 stars for Kesari.