'Chhaava' review: Vicky Kaushal's film is overlong and uneven
What's the story
Laxman Utekar (Mimi, Zara Hatke Zara Bachke) has helmed the large-scale historical drama, Chhaava.
Headlined by Vicky Kaushal and co-starring Rashmika Mandanna and Akshaye Khanna, the film teems with honest intentions and features another surefooted performance by Kaushal.
However, there isn't enough fuel to keep this 160+ minutes long film successfully afloat, and despite the immense potential, Chhaava ends up as an average affair.
Background
Pays tribute to Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj
Based on the novel of the same name by Shivaji Sawant, Chhaava chronicles the life of revered Maratha King Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, the son of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
The film captures his battles with the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, the betrayal by the members of his own court, and his efforts toward Swarajya (independent rule).
Khanna plays Aurangzeb, while Mandanna plays Sambhaji's wife, Queen Yesubai.
#1
Cuts right to the chase
In the very first frame, embers light up the screen, Ajay Devgn narrates the backstory in a strong, commanding voice, and the film springs to life.
This is a massive, incredible genre shift for Utekar, who has earlier handled more rooted, contemporary stories.
He captures the battle scenes with a keen eye, staging them well, and impressing you with the film's scale and grandeur.
#2
More on the above point
It is to both Utekar and Kaushal's credit that we are deeply stirred by Sambhaji's valor and indomitable courage much, much before he even speaks his first dialogue.
The first battle in the film is the most effective, memorable, and gripping, and even though it goes on for a little longer than it should, it firmly cements the path for what lies ahead.
#3
No such thing as a bad Vicky Kaushal performance
After every film, it's now almost a tradition to say that Kaushal outdid himself, and Chhaava is no exception.
While better dialogues and a more humane arc would have helped his character, Kaushal gives this complex character his all, embodying the required rage and conviction, and transporting you to the 17th century, only if momentarily.
Each time he winced in pain, I did too.
#4
However, not all of it works well
Despite the grand visuals and the behemoth scale, Chhaava leaves much to be desired.
There are few crimes worse in cinema than a wasted ensemble, and Chhaava wastes nearly everyone!
Utekar isn't too sure about what to do with Rajmata Soyarabai (Divya Dutta), Zinat-un-Nissa Begum (Diana Penty), and Muhammad Akbar (Neil Bhoopalam), and their characters enter and exit without stirring any emotion in you.
#5
All action and no emotions!
Chhaava struggles greatly when it comes to connecting with the audience.
Sure, large-scale historical dramas are incomplete without long-drawn action sequences, but how long can one watch (tolerate) only action?
For the most part, Chhaava seems like a montage of action scenes with no emotional core, and even when several important characters die, you don't feel even an iota of pain.
#6
Mandanna's presence doesn't help the film at all
The film uses gore and brutal imagery to make you feel something, but that hardly works because everything is so devoid of life and soul.
Mandanna is another weak link—she struggles greatly to get the accent right (also an issue in her 2022 film Goodbye).
Thus, it always looks like she's just enacting the character in a perfunctory manner, never truly living it.
#7
Where is the drama?
A film like this should feature several memorable, gripping dramatic sequences, but the makers have paid next to no attention to this because they are so obsessed with the action scenes.
Chhaava is a paradoxical case; it feels both overlong and exhausting, but at the same time, also rushed and too quick, slipping through our fingers before we know it.
Verdict
Skip in theaters, watch on OTT; 2.5/5 stars
Chhaava gives you a few reasons to admire it, but then just as many to dissuade you from it.
With two fascinating historical figures as its subject matter, and a strong ensemble, Chhaava should have been a rousing, stunning affair, but it tragically runs out of momentum.
It's replete with chaos, only if had some strokes of warmth and quiet, too.
2.5/5 stars.