Indian 2 movie review: Outmoded and outdated, Kamal Haasan-starrer is a three-hour time suck

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Basically, this time around, Shankar doing Shankar things is outmoded and outdated.

Almost three decades later, corruption is still as rife as ever. An idealistic would-be teacher jumps out of a tall building because the officer asked for a bribe. Small-time babus, men and women, have their mouths open for extras. A student kills himself because his father doesn’t have the money to pay a loan. Our Indian, looking remarkably preserved for all the time that’s passed, charges in to rescue the meek and the unwashed, and to declare war against the rich and the powerful.

A few garish set-pieces, in which Hindustani takes on goons with their bristling guns, as well as a fleet of cops, are meant to thrill. One has Gulshan Grover playing a Vijay Mallya lookalike, cavorting with scantily-clad ladies in a boat on the high seas. Another has a Gujarati seth oozing with vulgar wealth, whose WC is made of gold. Yet another features a crooked space nerd played by Piyush Mishra, who also gets his just desserts. Not one of these, in which Indian showcases his skills, holds our attention.

You wish that Siddharth, who leads a group of social media warriors, had more to do. Rakul Preet Singh, who can be watchable, has even more nothing to do. And everyone else, satellites to the surging Ulagnayagan, know their place: they say their lines, and wait for Indian to burst forth to save the world.

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Someone should have saved us, the viewers, instead. Indian 2 is nothing but a three hour time suck, where I was bored out of my wits. The end credits tell us that there’s going to be a third part. Help.

Indian 2
Director – Shankar
Cast – Kamal Haasan, Siddharth, Rakul Preeti Singh, S J Suryah, Bobby Simha, Priya Bhavani Shankar, Vivek, Gulshan Grover, Piyush Mishra, Akhilendra Mishra
Rating – 1/5