Naqaab Movie Review

Thrillers and Abbas Mustan both need to be said in the same breathe. Both are rather synonymous to each other. Abbas Mustan the director duo are Bollywood’s thriller masters. But that’s nothing to be proud of. Infact it’s a shame that we do not have better thriller makers in Bollywood. And I mean it. Apart from Baazigar and Khiladi (to some extent), the duo haven’t been able to create an above average film to date.

Add some romance, sprinkle some comedy, mix it with hit songs and ya do not forget the time to time dash of some cheap thrills. Lo Behold…. you’ve got an Abbas Mustaan film.

Naqaab too follows the same recipe. There is a lot of romance, comedy is tried but sans Johnny Lever and so it’s as good as no comedy. There are some thrills and yes there is that last minute, “Oh My Ghosh!” twist. The music of Naqaab will surely go into the worst music of an Abbas Mustaan film. Abbas Mustaan infact are a brand when it comes to delivering hit music and infact all their films have had superhit tracks. But the music of Naqaab disappoints barring Ek Din, none of the songs rise above the normal stuff.

Naqaab Movie Story

If you feel Naqaab is similar toAbbas Mustaan’s earlier hit Humraaz, then now is the time to get rid of all your premonitions. Barring the fact that both the movie are thrillers and triangular love stories, the two films are as different as chalk and cheese.Rich boy( Bobby Deol) falls in love with poor girl(Urvashi Sharma) and their couple is of the made in heaven type. Suddenly Akshaye Khanna spots Urvashi at a party and he falls for her. After some initial resistance Urvashi too realises that she loves Akshaye and not Bobby. Then begins a game of deceit and revenge leading to a rather strong culmination.

The Naqaab Movie Review

For starters, Abbas Mastaan must be given credit for trying out a rather unique story. Although copied from the Hollywood film “Dot The I’, to take the risk of trying a new concept surely needs to be lauded. But the problem is that you might want to prepare a delicious dish by adding a whole lot of new ingredients but if not done properly then it could lead to a sour taste. The same problem is with Naqaab. The intentions were clear but the result was disappointing.

Firstly when you make a thriller, its necessary to get the audience glued right from the word Go. Great thrillers are those that keep you at the seat’s edge, biting your nails and scrathing your head in order to find answers as to what would happen next. But Naqaab truly disappoints on all those counts. Halfway into the film and I was, “This Was Supposed To Be A Thriller Right? ”

Naqaab builds up its tempo towards the end and I must admit the twists do surprise me. But now the fact is that surprising also must be convincing. I was pretty much disappointed with tthe way Naqaab was handled towards the end. It had the suspense element but lacked the thrill element which is so much quintessential in the making of a perfect thriller.

Urvashi looks glamorous and shows a lot of skin and cleavage. She dances like a dream, especially in the “Ek Din” song. Wish, I could praise her acting too. Work on your acting skills and choose better roles and you could well be Bollywood’s next star, Urvashi. Bobby Deol performs adequately. But Akshaye Khanna is one lotus that blooms in this gutter, that is Naqaab. His wry smile, his dialogue delivery, the way he carries his character does need an applause. Actually Akshaye Khanna has performed much better in many other films. But even an average student will appear bright if he is put in a class of dull people and that’s the case with Akshaye Khanna.And how can I forget the two friends of Akshaye Khana in the film. Those two who otherwise were quite adequate simply mess up the film with their amateurish acting towards the end reels of the film.

Finally summing it up all, Naqaab is an average thriller with respect to Bollywood standards and if you compare the film to thrillers made all over the world, then Naqaab is a rather sub-standard film, that we ought to be ashamed of. To win a boxing match you do not need those small blows you need that knockout punch that blows you away and that’s what is lacking in Naqaab. Guess Abbas Mustaan should wear Naqaab’s and disguise themselves lest they not suffer the wrath of the audience.

Movie Rating : 3/10