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Yash Raj Films'
Dhoom 2

Produced by: Aditya Chopra
Directed by: Sanjay Gadhvi
Music by: Pritam
Featuring: Aishwayra Rai, Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan, Uday Chopra, Bipasha Basu others

Hrithik grandslam
Don't look for plots and you won't feel the plot-holes. Dhoom 2 is what a caper film should be - which should not be taken to mean it's a perfect piece of caper cinema. For one, it could have moved much faster, for another, the executed robberies could have been more cerebral in terms of their excitement quotient and maintained a consistent visual value like the superb opening robbery sequence.

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But we won't nitpick. 2006 is pre-eminently the year of sequels (with Krrish, Phir Hera Pheri and Lage Raho Munnabhai topping the earners of the year in that specific order) and Dhoom 2 will take a respectable position among them even though I do not see it upsetting the Krrish apple-cart in the total earnings.

The link-up with the original is crisp - we have Ali as a cop now, Jai Dixit with his wife in an advanced state of pregnancy (this is not followed up at all, or was it edited out as this film is much longer than Dhoom?). For further connections, we have a top cop from outside Mumbai, Shonali (Bipasha Basu) coming in - she is after 'A', an international thief about whom nothing is known, not even his face or name, and so called only because he leaves his monogram, 'A' the alphabet at the scene of the crime. Plot-hole number One (we will be mentioning only one more) In that case, how did everyone assume that he was an Indian?

But let's move on. Ali falls for Shonali, who rebuffs him. The interesting angle here is that Shonali and Jai are college-mates and their relationship is kept tantalizingly mysterious - hints about Shonali having loved Jai are thrown, and wifey (Rimmi in a cameo from the first film) is furious. Ali and Mrs Dixit are pals who often tease the over-serious Jai and so Ali promises that he will get Shonali to fall in love with him, Ali, to save the Dixit family!

Our master-criminal, meanwhile, gets smarter and more daring by announcing his moves in advance as he is now located in India. He joins forces with Sunehri (Aishwarya Rai), who is a plant by Jai who has promised her freedom from a jail term in return for this help. A and Sunehri move to Rio De Janeiro for their biggest heist, and Jai and Ali land up in pursuit. Based here is Shonali's twin Monali, and for Ali it's a case of instant (and this time reciprocated) love. Why is Shonali (who was tracking 'A' for two years) kept away from the mission and replaced by Ali? That's plot-hole Number Two - but it has an obvious explanation!

The hour of reckoning appears as Jai and A meet, reveal their identities to each other, and the relationship between 'A'and Sunehri takes on a different hue and level when 'A' knows that Sunehri is Jai's agent. What happens then between them is a highlight and the pre-climax of the film.

Technically, the film's action by Allan Amin (with Vic Armstrong's guidance) and the camera work are brilliant, as are the sets by a team of production designers led by veterans Guruji Brothers. The editing is crisp but Sanjay Gadhvi's otherwise ably-directed work could have done with a brisker pace, especially in the second half. A complete downer is the music (Pritam yet again in disastrous mode), and the background music (by Salim-Suleiman) had lot of scope for improvement too. But Dwarak Warrier's sound design is terrific.

Among the cast, with all apologies to the rest, it is a Hrithik Roshan grandslam, and his disguises are as awesome as his performance and his multifarious skills at acting, action, singing and dancing. Everyone else pales into the shadows before that magnificent charisma and talent, though Aishwarya Rai valiantly tries to match him - and manages to do so in the last 45 minutes.

Watch this film for sheer entertainment value - the locations are at par with any Bond movie that wanders across continents, and Hrithik alone is worth more than the price of your ticket.

KEY TO RATINGS:
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