Thread by @gchikermane

The real discovery in #SamratPrithviraj is @ManushiChhillar. Watch the film for the entire run up to, and climax of, the swayamwar sequence. It’s kshatriyata, it’s gender rights, it’s valour. Above all, it’s a set of great performances—firm yet respectful, dissenting yet dharmic.

In a film that hovers between fresh nationalism and dharma on the one side and predictable and out of synch song-and-dance routine on the other, it is @ManushiChhillar who saves the film and stays in the mind. She delivers the dances with grace but doesn’t let them smother her.

The dialogue with her mother #SakshiTanwar is as much a conversation of young rebellion with status quo as the intimacy that binds women. In turn, Sakshi Tanwar’s dialogue with her husband Jaichand (@ranaashutosh10) is a conversation that extracts dharma from the jaws of power.

The other actor who leaves an impact is @SonuSood, the poet-friend of Prithviraj whose understated performance and expressive eyes speak more than words or actions. Great character, well characterised.
@akshaykumar as Prithviraj remains the star-king.

But the essence of this film—war sequences—is mixed. The first battle scene carries intelligent and strategic clarity, the second is all swords-and-spears, and the third treachery. The fight with lions aside, this is a 1990s treatment in 2022. We exit scratching our heads.

For any action film, the new benchmarks have been set by the raw intensity of #KGFChapter2 #Pushpa or the absolutely insane fight sequences in #RRR. If you can’t even dare to imagine, leave alone deliver such craftsmanship, you are better off sticking to chiklits and dramas.

In 2022, raw nationalism and high dharma need the support of cinematic conviction. For such a theme to revert to striking colours on a desert with love songs is ridiculous and jarring. This technique belongs to yesterday’s pyaar-shadi hits; today’s hitmen don’t need them.

By bringing these colours and contrasts, the legendary creator of Chanakya, Chandraprakash Dwivedi, is doing injustice to himself. He is reducing the intensity of the theme, the story and the treatment, and offering self-destructive cinematic confusion. Completely off-track.

In all such films, it is the bad guys who create spaces for the rise of good. The bad guy provides the contrast, the challenges and the victories. But if you’re looking for Prem in Bobby, Gabbar Singh in Sholay or Kancha in Agneepath, you need to time-travel.

Despite good actors, the bad team remains theatrical. Barring a scene or two by @ranaashutosh10 as Jaichand, who does well portraying the character of a frustrated king, menace is missing. Manav Vij as Mohammad Ghori wears great costumes, but fails to instil fear or trembling.

There is a brilliant and persuasive sequence reflecting the ongoing dynastic discourse in India today: Yogyata, not rishta, will decide leadership.
This alternative view of India and its traditions brings a delightful freshness that steers clear of fake virtue-signalling.

As an alternative narrative, therefore, #SamratPrithviraj speaks volumes, something director Chandraprakash Dwivedi is good at. From a voice for gender equality to leadership by merit to the ‘idea’ of Jaichand, Dwivedi sets loose sharp arrows in his quiver and invites applause.

But as a film, it attempts to serve yesterday’s audiences—not contemporary Bharat. A new idea needs a new finesse, the medium carrying the message needs an upgrade.
As a result, the great narrative of #SamratPrithviraj falls short of becoming a great film.