Shivaay

Director: Ajay Devgan

Writers: Sandeep Srivastava, Robin Bhatt

Stars: Ajay Devgan, Abigail Eames, Erika Kaar, Sayyeshaa Saigal, Girish Karnad

Strength: Cast, Visuals 

Weakness: Direction, Story

Rating: 2/5

Runtime: 172min

Plot: A lionhearted Himalayan mountaineer who is also a responsible and loving father of a nine year old daughter Gaura. Shivaay heads to Bulgaria against his will to satisfy his daughter's wish, in search of her mother Olga who had forsaken them nine years ago. Life has been cruel to Shivaa even after all the years of struggle and to make matters worse, his daughter is kidnapped in the foreign land. 

Review: The film succeeded to capture the remarkable opening scene that sees Ajay Devgan walking down towards the Himalayan cliffs like a pro which is spine tingling. The mountains were portrayed picturesquely unlike any other film. The story picks up pace with the visit of a Bulgarian girl to the Himalaya who stole Shivaay's heart with her spoken Indian words and soulful eyes. However the chemistry between two vanishes like a whirlwind and it fails to engage the viewers emotionally. Before you know it, she departs India leaving behind her child with Shivaay.

The film shows the struggles Shivaay has to undergo to raise his deaf daughter. Things take a turn when she finds her mother's last letter and urges Shivaay to take her to Bulgaria to meet her mother. Once there, Shivaay gets to witness the terror of child trafficking and organ trade of innocents. By that time he becomes a target of the traffickers due to his actions against them. The situation intensifies when the daughter is kidnapped and all hell breaks loose when Shivaay tries to rescue her. The action sequences that follow, packs quite a punch. The extended car-chase sequence in particular is outstanding.

However, the lengthy runtime with inappropriate dialogues and weak direction, made it a tedious film. With a proper story to tell, the movie could have been more interesting.

Reviewed by Anika Tanjim