After Holiday, Baby, Gabbar and many such films that showcase patriotism in a whole new way, Akshay Kumar is back with yet another interesting film Airlift. Right from the announcement and the first promo of ‘Airlift’, the expectations level rose sky high as, it narrated a historic tale of largest human evacuation with the backdrop of Iraq invasion in Kuwait. So let’s find out, whether ‘Airlift’ which is directed by Raja Krishna Menon will be able to do proper justice to this real life incident with help of fictional characters or might end up being one among all those films,  where such concepts are only used to add the novelty factor in the films.

Story:-

‘Airlift’, is a fictional story based on the Iraq-Kuwait war in the year 1990. Ranjit Katyal (Akshay Kumar) is a rich and famous man in Kuwait, residing with his wife Amrita (Nimrat Kaur) and their child. Their world turns upside down when the troops of Saddam Hussain attack Kuwait. Iraqi major, Major Khalaf Bin Zayd (Inaamulhaq), suggest Ranjit, to leave the country and head for a safe place. But before Ranjit could take any decision, his office is flooded with many Indians residing in his area. The count keeps growing due to which Ranjit decide to set a camp for the strangled Indians. After setting the camp, Ranjit seeks help from the Indian embassy and the Indian government so that he can arrange a safe passage for all these people. Things does not go as Ranjit had planned, How the whole mission is carried along forms the rest of the story.

Positive Points:-

Apart from all the other things, the casting of the film is one of the paramount parts of the film. No other actor can be imagined or can even carry off a role like this better than Akshay Kumar. He is brilliant in every scene and the way in which he depicts numerous emotions time after another is applaud worthy. Nimrat, who has already proven her worth in The Lunch box, shines like a star in this as well. She is of great support to Akshay and portrays rage and grief perfectly. Inaamulhaq is amazing in his role of an Iraqi Major. Purab Kohli, Kumud Mishra, Ninad Kamat and others, lend good support. Prakash Belawade as George Kutty is outstanding.

Negative Points:-

Climax of the film is a big hurried and could have been more explicable and better. The way things are wrapped up in a hurry is a bit of a let down after such an engrossing watch.

Technical Points:-

Producer Nikhil Advani brings up yet another semi-fictional film, on the lines of his most hard-hitting film ‘D-Day’. The difference out here, is that, it’s set on the real happenings and has more reality attached to it. Director Raja Krishna Menon is excellent when it comes to researching and bringing to you a long-forgotten saga from the history in a way that it is also visually appealing.

Music by Amaal Mallik and Ankit Tiwari is good. ‘Dil Cheez Tujhe Dedi’ is inspired from the international pop song ‘Didi’ by Khaled. ‘Soch Na Sake’ is outstanding and has been brilliantly placed in the film. ‘Mera Nachan Nu’ is fine but it’s ‘Tu Bhoola Jise’ which adds the emotional factor in the finale portion of the film.

The screenplay is edge-of-the-seat and does not give you a single moment to look away. The cinematography is fabulous and is so is the editing. The movie has elements of humour, romance, drama, war and patriotism all induced in one.

Last Word:-

On the whole, On an overall basis, ‘Airlift’ is a fine docu-drama with stellar performance and brilliant story telling. We are proud to be part of an era where Bollywood is capable of delivering such real life wonders. The overall emotional connect and patriotic feel that the movie possesses is definitely a thing that will move every single person and makes this film a must watch this weekend.