Khufiya Movie Review: Tabu, Ali Fazal and Wamiqa Gabbi's Netflix Spy Thriller is an Unfortunate Vishal Bhardwaj Misfire! (LatestLY Exclusive)

Khufiya Movie Review: Vishal Bhardwaj's new film Khufiya is based on Amar Bhushan's novel Escape to Nowhere, a spy thriller revolving around RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) and inspired by real-life incidents. With Tabu, Wamiqa Gabbi, Ali Fazal, and Atul Kulkarni under the direction of the renowned VB, I anticipated embarking on a cerebral yet exhilarating thrill ride. However, while Khufiya has its moments that worked well, the overall experience didn't live up to my expectations from a Vishal Bhardwaj brand of cinema. Khufiya: Tabu and Ali Fazal’s Spy Thriller Film To Screen at Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles 2023.

Following the 1999 Kargil War, India and Pakistan closely monitored the upcoming elections in Bangladesh. During this period, a spy known as Octopus in Dhaka was exposed and killed during a covert operation. RAW head Jeev (Ashish Vidyarthi) reveals to one of his key officers, KM (Tabu), that there is a mole within their organisation leaking information, leading to Octopus' death. That mole is Ravi Mohan (Ali Fazal), a devoted family man.

KM, who was in love with Octopus, whose real name was Heena Rehman (Azmeri Haque Badhon), is assigned to uncover who Ravi is supplying information to and how he manages to do so. They discreetly install surveillance cameras in his office and home, spying on him and his wife, Charu (Wamiqa Gabbi), suspecting that she is also involved in his operations. Although why they didn't put one in his car-shed, at least initially, remains a mystery to me. Whether KM and her team manage to apprehend Ravi and identify his mysterious boss is what the rest of Khufiya is about. Khufiya: Tabu Feels No One Can Explore William Shakespeare Better Than Vishal Bhardwaj.

Watch the Trailer of Khufiya:

Vishal Bhardwaj has always excelled in crafting dark, conflicted characters, as evident in his previous masterpieces like Maqbool, Kaminey, Omkara, and Haider. However, at some point, I felt VB was striving too hard to meet his own high standards, which has impacted some of his recent works. They assume the guise of thoughtful masterpieces but often end up being a mixed bag of emotions for me as a viewer. Unfortunately, Khufiya continues down the same path, despite its intriguing storyline and the thrill of seeing Tabu in a leading role in a spy movie.

Khufiya starts off decently with the public murder of Octopus, while immediately establishing her significance to KM. Adding a personal connection to her new mission provides more depth to KM as a character. As someone who hasn't read the novel, I was curious to see if her emotional turmoil would compromise her professional duties and potentially jeopardise the mission. The incorporation of real-life political events, such as the abandoned Indo-US nuclear deal, adds an intriguing layer to the film's narrative.

There are also some unexpected twists and character developments, with supporting characters revealing themselves to be more sinister than they initially appear. However, after the initial excitement, I found it challenging to connect with the characters' inner struggles, contend with the stretched runtime, and grapple with the writing, and even some of the previously mentioned strengths also become its weaknesses.

Take KM's character, for instance. While I mentioned earlier that Heena's demise adds internal anguish to her, it doesn't significantly affect her performance on the job. In fact, her emotional conflict is driven more by her inability to be there for her teenage son due to work-related issues and her struggle to come out to him. Meanwhile, Heena's story is relegated to extended flashbacks. Although I appreciated the playful chemistry between Azmeri and Tabu, those scenes didn't seem to contribute significantly to the film's broader context. Isn't capturing a traitorous mole already a high-priority task? Moreover, why would a RAW chief assign an officer with such personal stakes to apprehend a man they need alive?

Apart from the writing surrounding her character, Tabu also has limited scope in the second half of the film, where the focus shifts more towards Wamiqa's Charu. The portions set in Alberta are less engaging than those in India, and certain character decisions seem puzzling, such as a lengthy phone call that Charu has with KM at Ravi's new hideout, despite the associated risks (it doesn't end well as expected). The climax appears farcical and, frankly, somewhat comical, leaving the audience with more questions than answers. Even Charu and Ravi suffer from this perplexing writing. Ideally, the screenplay should have delved deeper into Ravi's character, providing insights into how a citizen sworn to protect the country's interests could turn against it. Ravi's defense is reduced to a brief monologue, while the film merely touches upon his regret for trusting his new employer. Charlie Chopra Review: Wamiqa Gabbi Shines In Vishal Bhardwaj's Engaging Murder-Mystery.

To add to it all, there are two songs featuring a musical guru, possibly inspired by figures like Osho or Sadhguru, which only serve to further elongate the already stretched runtime.

In terms of performances, Tabu delivers a solid performance, but her character's stoicism and seriousness throughout the film don't make KM particularly intriguing. Wamiqa Gabbi performs decently and gets more room to shine in the second half. Ali Fazal's performance was just passable, and his struggle to appear convincing in emotional scenes was evident. Ashish Vidyarthi's portrayal of the level-headed RAW chief was quite qood.

Final Thoughts

Frankly, Vishal Bhardwaj can never make a subpar film, but he does tend to create disappointing ones, as seen with 7 Khoon Maaf and Rangoon. Khufiya is, sadly, is in the same league as them, which makes it a challenging movie to review, like with all mid movies. Khufiya does offer glimpses of potential with its intriguing premise and talented cast, but it struggles to fully fulfill its promise. While Vishal Bhardwaj's talent for crafting complex characters and the film's engaging plot twists kept me engaged, it couldn't entirely overcome certain shortcomings in character development, pacing, and narrative focus. Khufiya is streaming on Netflix.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 05, 2023 12:32 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).