Haiwaan movie review: Saif steals the show, Akshay goes dark

Directed by Priyadarshan, Haiwaan is the Hindi remake of his 2016 Malayalam thriller Oppam, which starred Mohanlal

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Bollywood really needs a good script now. I walked into a theatre in Hyderabad to watch Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan’s Haiwaan on its first day, and guess what? The theatre was almost completely empty. I was among the first few people there, and only a handful joined later.

Usually, I try not to judge a film by the crowd it gets, but in this case, the low turnout somehow matched the film’s biggest problem, there is a promising idea here, but the execution simply does not have enough punch.

One tap — then press “Add” on Google

Interestingly, Hyderabad was not the only city to see such a response. A similar experience was reported from Delhi, a city with a strong Hindi-speaking audience, where the first-day show also had only a few people. So, maybe the bigger question is not just about one film or one city, but about whether Bollywood is giving audiences enough reason to step into theatres anymore.

Directed by Priyadarshan, Haiwaan is the Hindi remake of his 2016 Malayalam thriller Oppam, which starred Mohanlal. The film marks the reunion of Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan after 18 years. Saif plays Shyam Rane, a blind man with extraordinary sensory abilities, while Akshay plays Parshuram, a ruthless convict who goes on a revenge spree after being released from prison.

The concept of Haiwaan is actually quite interesting. Shyam may be blind, but his heightened sense of hearing and smell, physical strength and familiarity with his surroundings allow him to navigate situations differently. When he becomes responsible for protecting a young girl from a dangerous man, the film sets up an unusual cat-and-mouse game.

And when Haiwaan works, it genuinely works.

The interval block, the face-off between Saif and Akshay, the police station sequence and some of the pre-climax portions create the tension you expect from a thriller. The background score is another plus and adds weight to several intense scenes.

But the problem is that the film takes too long to get there.

Saif Ali Khan is the real winner

For me, Saif Ali Khan is the heart and soul of Haiwaan.

He approaches Shyam with sincerity and manages to bring emotion to a character that the screenplay sometimes struggles to make believable. There are moments when you completely forget the film’s shortcomings because Saif pulls you into Shyam’s world.

If you are a Saif Ali Khan fan, I would say this is definitely worth a one-time watch for him. In fact, his performance is one of the biggest reasons I am giving the film three stars.

Akshay Kumar, meanwhile, goes into a much darker space as Parshuram. He does not have an extremely long screen presence, but his eyes, expressions and constant intensity make him genuinely menacing. Some of his scenes are among the film’s most effective moments.

Where Haiwaan loses its grip

The screenplay is the biggest letdown. The film spends too much time explaining Shyam’s abilities instead of allowing the audience to discover them naturally. His character can play multiple instruments, sing, wrestle, fight and even use his sense of smell to identify people but after a point, these abilities start feeling less like realistic adaptations and more like superhero powers.

Then comes the second half, where the logic becomes increasingly convenient.

The investigation does not always make sense, several situations feel forced, and there are abrupt cuts and endings that leave you wondering why the scene was written that way in the first place. One particular sequence where Shyam survives a seemingly fatal accident involving multiple cars is simply too much to digest.

The runtime does not help either. Haiwaan could have been much sharper with tighter editing. There are stretches where you feel you could leave the theatre for popcorn and come back without missing anything major.

Even Shyam’s appearance feels slightly disconnected from his circumstances. He is introduced as a maintenance manager struggling to support his family, yet his stylish clothes, expensive-looking accessories and overall appearance sometimes make him look more like a fashion-conscious action hero. Pataudiness was not leaving Saif.

Supporting cast and Asrani’s farewell

Boman Irani brings gravitas to his role as the retired judge (though he deserved more), while Saiyami Kher and Sharib Hashmi get limited scope. Pahal Chaudhary, who plays Nandini, has an important part in the story but her character is also restricted by the writing.

And then there is Asrani.

Haiwaan carries an emotional significance as the final film Asrani shot before his death.

Rajpal Yadav’s little comic timing brings some much-needed relief to a film that otherwise takes itself very seriously.

And last but not the least, Haiwaan shuts the curtains with Oppam’s Mohanlal’s cameo.

Verdict

Haiwaan is not a complete disaster. It has a strong central idea, two major stars, some good performances, an effective BGM and a few genuinely gripping sequences. But somewhere between the interesting premise and the climax, the film loses the urgency that a thriller desperately needs.

Priyadarshan, who directed the original Oppam as well, had a solid opportunity to reinvent the story for today’s Hindi audience. Unfortunately, the film often feels dated, stretched and overly dependent on convenient writing.

Saif Ali Khan is the biggest reason to watch it, Akshay Kumar brings the darkness, and the interval and climax deliver some solid moments. But as a whole, this is a thriller that had the ingredients to be much better than what finally reaches the screen.

Watch it for Saif. Watch it for Akshay’s dark avatar. But don’t walk in expecting a nail-biting thriller from start to finish.