Ek Villain Returns Disappoints Fans by Not Emotionally Touching Them
Ek Villain Returns offers a lot of twists, but don’t emotionally cheer on any of the characters or the story, even if you wish the situation were different. The writers failed to add more power to all of the central characters. Yes, the characters are humane and imperfect, but unfortunately this makes them unrecognizable and they don’t deserve much empathy.
Bhairav (John Abraham), a lover, cannot understand the rejection of Rasika (Disha Patani), the woman he loves. Singer Aarvi (Tara Sut aria) is kidnapped from her home under mysterious and threatening circumstances. When her lover Gautam (Arjun Kapoor), who is accused of her sudden disappearance, goes looking for her, her path crosses with Bhairav, leading to many drama and action.
Director Mohit Suri’s film offers a simple story with multiple twists throughout the run to the final frame. Elements slide around the storyboard as the non-linear presentation of the story changes. You wish there was a lot more thought in this to create a better balance between the first and second halves of the film, to make it a tighter and more gripping romantic thriller. While they added pacing and spice to the script and dialogue, the writers failed to add more power to all of the central characters.
Plus, they could have removed the toxicity for women in the film, which detracts from the point the story tries to make about love, loss, rejection, and heartache. Roles like those written for Shaad Randhawa and JD Chakravarty needed some reflection, as did the police procedures depicted in the film, as they could have provided much-needed story support. The repeated version of Galliyan that plays often throughout the narrative has a calming effect on what is otherwise quite intense throughout the runtime. We want the other tracks on the album to be just as hummable and memorable as they form an important aspect of the narrative of a romantic thriller. The songs on the album are okay but they don’t recreate the magic of Ek Villain’s album which is now a few years old.
