‘Ulajh’ Movie Review: Janhvi Kapoor’s Wildly Uneven Thriller Takes the Fun out of the Spy Games! (LatestLY Exclusive)

Ulajh Movie Review: Sometimes, you have a really interesting story to tell, enlist some good actors (and one trying to fit in uncomfortably), add an intriguing sense of pacing, and yet manage to screw it all up. Fitting that description is one of this week's Hindi releases, Ulajh. Directed by Sudhanshu Saria, Ulajh is a spy thriller led by Janhvi Kapoor, who, I have to say, is in a better space here as a performer compared to her last two movies, Bawaal and Mr & Mrs Mahi. In the intense and emotional scenes, the young actress is not bad, even if you don't feel that intensity when she says near the climax, 'pura ka pura sher khaa jaungi'. Also, she comes at a disadvantage when she has to act in a scene with either Devaiah or Mathew, at which point, she ends up being upstaged by them. ‘Ulajh’ Box Office: Will Janhvi Kapoor Have Her Fourth Consecutive Flop As Lead? Her New Movie’s Below-Par Advance Ticket Sales Lead That Way!

In Ulajh, Kapoor plays Suhana Bhatia, an IFS officer who, thanks to her paternal influence, is appointed Deputy Commissioner in the Indian High Commission in London. If you think the movie is going to be subtle about its allegory on nepotism and how someone gets a better opportunity thanks to their 'legacy', the writing is very clear on the wall, as her subordinates don't have much liking for Suhana (neither the nomenclature nor the casting is subtle here). Particularly the RAW agents at the Commission office - Sebin (Roshan Mathew) and Jacob (Meiyang Chang).

Suhana doesn't help her case much either when she falls for Nakul (Gulshan Devaiah), who claims to be a Michelin chef. Since he is played by Devaiah, you know that wouldn't be the case, and at the same time, you also get to witness the awkwardness of having to see a 40-plus actor getting intimate with a 20-plus actress. Sure, the character is later established as an older man (duh), and he turns out to be a creep, but the initial portions of the courtship are treated with a playful charm, and that's what makes them awkward to watch. Devaiah is a fantastic actor, and he is quite apt when his arc shifts more into the grey-shaded part, but I wonder why they couldn't go for a younger actor. Maybe the makers could have swapped roles with an already existent cast member here, like Mr Mathew.

Watch the Trailer of 'Ulajh':

Anyway, Nakul's seduction of Suhana lands her in trouble, as she is blackmailed by him to do his bidding. It begins with the leak of some tender papers before things start to escalate. Now Suhana has to escape from this trap without arousing the suspicion of anyone about her helpless betrayal. She doesn't know yet that she is actually a pawn in a larger conspiracy that could lead to an escalation of tensions between India and Pakistan.

'Ulajh' Movie Review -  A Serviceable First Half

From its intricate plot setting to its greyish colour tone, Ulajh gives the impression that it has the makings of a cerebral spy thriller. However, like the duplicitous faces of some of its characters, that's simply a facade here. This thriller starts off with plenty of promise, keeps the plotting slow and steady without losing much momentum, throws in a couple of shock twists, and then ruins it all with some ludicrous writing, editing, and direction, particularly in the second half. Mr and Mrs Mahi Movie Review: Rajkummar Rao and Janhvi Kapoor Try to Evoke 'Abhimaan' Vibes in This Predictable Sports Drama.

While I may have taken some light digs at the nepotism angle and the awkward age-gap pairing, these portions are actually when Ulajh is at its most engaging. For one, they do a decent job first in setting up the rawness of Suhana in a role that she may not be suited for in the first place, and then have her make some rookie mistakes in falling for the wrong person. Nakul's psychological taunting of Suhana adds dramatic weight to her emotional conflict, as we are left curious to see how she can get out of the mess she unwittingly created.

When a major twist happens before the interval point—though the framing of the scene makes it clear that someone won't survive that scene—I admit I was hooked.

'Ulajh' Movie Review - A Second Half That Goes Awry

It's in the second half where Ulajh just couldn't hold its pretence of being a smart thriller, with some amateurish plotting and execution. Scenes start making less sense despite the context given to them. When RAW assigned Suhana to investigate the mole in her office, I laughed. It makes no sense for India's best intelligence unit not to put her under the radar when, ideally, they should have put the entire workforce under suspicion instead of just one person. There is reasoning given later as to why this was done, but that doesn't bode well with the logic of the situation. Similarly, Suhana following Nakul and finding another traitor close to her also feels silly, considering it is established that she is always under their radar in the earlier scenes. This is the problem—how can we treat you as a 'smart' thriller when we have to keep questioning what's going on?

Ulajh shows promise of wanting to get a little better when Suhana and Sebin are coerced to work together after an unexpected development. Roshan Mathew gets more to do in the second half, and their face-off scene is quite engaging. He is quite good in the scene where he goes on an angry rant in Malayalam, though for my non-Mallu brethren, my screen didn't have any subtitles. Also, the muting of the swear words and abuses dampens some of the impact of the dialogues. Bawaal Movie Review: Varun Dhawan and Jahnvi Kapoor Take You Through a Tedious European Tour in This Nitesh Tiwari Film.

When Ulajh pairs up these two, I hoped the movie would get better. Sadly, here's where the movie begins to face another issue—its tone. For two people who could hardly stand each other and should ideally be distrustful of each other, the scenes of their fun banter feel quite out of place in the way the camaraderie is established, but not so out of place as the promotion of Pulse candies the makers inserted in the film. I always wondered how the stars are told to perform such scenes that feature such blatant product promotion—the fact that they pull off these scenes without showing embarrassment or cringe on their faces deserves some applause.

The weakest part of Ulajh is, ultimately, the climax, where the protagonist figures out what the villains' plans are through some very convenient blocks placed earlier in the movie and how she takes them on in a vexatious manner. Imagine you are two people on a lookout notice, and the villains have put no measure to keep checks on you, particularly when you are involving a couple of premium intelligence units. When the ending tries to establish an Avengers-like universe sequel bait with a Nick Fury-like cameo, as a viewer, I feel second-hand embarrassment. The only redeemable part is that Ulajh tries not to be overtly Islamophobic despite its potential to do so, and even that sounds like the movie is trying to pluck low-hanging fruits here.

'Ulajh' Movie Review - Final Thoughts

Ulajh is a film that teases the viewer with the potential of an intricate and gripping spy thriller but ultimately falters in its execution. While it does have moments of genuine intrigue and commendable performances from the supporting cast, the film is bogged down by inconsistent writing and plotting that demands too much suspension of disbelief.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 02, 2024 10:01 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).