The supersonic jets, the 'need for speed' and the missiles stuck when they are supposed to be fired away! Sounds like Top Gun Maverick? Yes, it does! But our very own Bollywood 'Queen' does it in her own unique style fuelled by a generous dose of deshbhakti and devotion. At 118 minutes, Ranaut's Tejas tries to keep the show both explosive and emotional. While the first half of this endeavour rides majorly on emotions the second half is all fiery. There are some shots that have been called just to impress you, and then there are sure-shot misfires. But all in all, Tejas works because of Ranaut's reassuring presence, the crisp and simple storytelling and the momentum the story gathers in the second half. Tejas: Kangana Ranaut Visits Ayodhya’s Ram Temple Ahead of Her Film’s Release, Actress Shares Pics On Insta! (View Post)

Written and directed by Sarvesh Mewara and produced by Ronnie Screwvala, Tejas tells the story of an impossibly skilled IAF pilot who delivers the goods with guaranteed results. She is even named after the popular warcraft Tejas (the mission to retrieve an Indian spy from Pakistani soil is christened the same in the second half) for a reason. She is fiesty, fiery and super explosive. She can kick baddies in the balls and is not afraid to fly high! In short, it's a Kangy show from frame one to the very conclusion. The other characters simply hover around her just like the enemy planes revolve around the aircraft she flies, without coming even an inch closer to what she does and how she does it!

Watch Tejas Trailer:

The film starts on a rather adventurous note where our leading heroine is seen throwing herself into a rescue mission. She merrily breaches the protocols and shows a complete disregard to the official guidelines. But hey her bravado doesn't go unnoticed! The story then showcases her romantic side. Varun Mitra as Tejas's love interest is charming, but all he does is this--look at his lady love with puppy eyed face till she says yes! What is simmering beneath the slow and steady start is the high octane second second half. The emotional quotient as indeed the saga of love and loss provides the perfect foil for the high octane second half. Tejas: From 'Dil Hai Ranjhana' To 'Shivaa,' Check Out The Full List of Songs From Kangana Ranaut's Movie (Watch Video)

With her portfolio demanding her to be a pilot, a soldier, a warfare strategist and a spy- all at once Tejas shines with multiple skills in her repertoire as indeed with her reputation. "Agar mission easy hai toh Tejas ko mat bhejna, aur agar mission dangerous hai toh usko zaroor consider karna," guarantees her mentor from the academy.

Soon things start getting complex and complicated with an Indian spy getting captured by Pakistani terrorists. Tejas is then appointed to execute the suicidal mission--that to retrieve the spy from the clutches of the bad guys from Pakistan. The makers then decide to unwrap the chaos and the cacophony with multiple war strategies thrown in. So, you get an optical elusion created at the runaway to hide the planes, the mastermind of terror attack getting nihilated in a swift stroke and an another terror attack on Ram Bhoomi getting foiled thanks to the famne fatale in the uniform operating from the front.

What works as much for Tejas as Ranaut's conviction to pull off the daredevilry is the the pace of the narrative. On the downside though the shoddy visual effects and the hurriedly stitched sequences (and there are too many of them in the second half) dilute the urgency and dissolve the impact the narrative would otherwise have had. As for the performances, Anshul Chauhan and Varun Mitra stand out with the limited material and the scope that has been handed out to them. Aashish Vidyarthi, as always, brings much gravitas to the seriousness of the mission that Tejas is. But it's Kangana show all the way and she shines the brightest!

Final Word:

Tejas is replete with battles in the skies, terror plots getting foiled with generous dose of patriotism. Watch this film for Kangana who carries it all on her able shoulders to draw cheers!

Rating:3.0

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 27, 2023 01:22 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).