18 April,2025 05:00 PM IST | Mumbai | Oshin Fernandes
Kesari Chapter 2 review: Akshay Kumar is back!
Akshay Kumar is back and how! Kesari Chapter 2 has become his saving grace after a series of flops. The courtroom drama that tells the untold story of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre through the lens of C. Sankaran Nair has managed to evoke emotions to an extent where the audience around me erupted in an impromptu applause mid-screening.
The plot is based on the book The Case That Shook The Empire by Raghu Palat and Pushpa Palat. The massacre scene that lays the foundation for this film is impactful and gut-wrenching. Akshay rules this narrative with this experience of playing several real-life characters on screen. He speaks one line in Malayalam, does Kathakali to establish himself as a South Indian, but keeps his accent intact to speak Hindi without the stereotypical approach.
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Ananya Panday, who plays his determined co-council, makes her mark as the female lead. R Madhavan, who plays Akshay's rival in the film, does an excellent job of igniting hate for his character, but his role could have used some depth. It was very Shaitaan-coded.
Props to Simon Paisley Day, who plays General Dyer. His chiselled cheekbones, aided by the most evil smirk and commanding presence, even against Akshay, was the perfect concoction of traits to portray the ruthless British officer.
Bollywood has usually maintained the norm of using cheesy dialogues, which sometimes reek of jingoism in a patriotic setup. However, Sumit Saxena does an excellent job of penning meaningful lines that don't deviate from the narrative's tone, which is overall quite subtle.
Director Karan Singh Tyagi, who also co-wrote the movie with Amritpal Singh Bindra, translated this chapter of history with the utmost sensitivity. Regina Cassandra, Amit Sial, and Krish Rao are some of the finest actors who aid Akshay to lead this narrative in a sophisticated manner.
It seems like Akshay finally took the opinions of his fans seriously and shut the noise of the yes-men around him. The actor, who is a pro when it comes to bringing true stories on the big screen, nails it this time with the right script and treatment. He went into this project armed with his primary strength - acting and the result is incredible. We can only hope and pray he continues this streak and chooses his next wisely.
