‘Khuda Hafiz: Chapter 2’ review: Vidyut Jammwal presents gripping action drama

A massive improvement over the first chapter of the franchise, writer-director Farooq Kabir delivers an engrossing action drama that is not devoid of socio-political realities. Set in Lucknow, for the most part, Khuda Hafiz 2 – Agni Pariksha Works like an inspiring piece of pulp fiction that sells out at Mufassil railway stations in the hinterland.

In the first part, software engineer Sameer Choudhary (Vidyut Jamwal) brings his wife Nargis (Shivalika Oberoi) home to a fictional sultanate in West Asia after being mysteriously abducted by drug lords. The sequel begins with the couple finding it difficult to navigate their relationship, as Nargis grapples with the mental trauma of the physical torture she suffered as a hostage.

Circumstances bring an orphan Nivedita into their lives, but before the past can heal, the 5-year-old is kidnapped by the grandson of Thakur Ji (Sheeba Chadha), an influential figure in the city of Nawabs. The boys have lustful eyes on an older girl and Nivedita becomes a collateral damage to Thakurji who only wants to save herself. This provides the film with the reason for its existence and Vidyut to uncover his ability to vanquish the opposition.

As expected, Electric is electric in the action sequences. Driven by brute force and stained with blood, action set pieces in a prison and a slaughterhouse stand out for their sheer rawness and visceral appeal. There is a glimmer of beauty in the way the simple elements like rain during the fight sequence and the green fields during the hunt for the girls have been shot.

However, when it comes to emotions, it seems that Vidyut has finally heard or found that he could not act. The result is that they ‘act out’ pretty much every frame, sometimes confusing cinema with pantomime.

Here he eschews the screenplay that almost convinces the audience that eye for eye is the only option left for the protagonist. Both Bollywood and Hollywood have a long tradition of unforgiving plots where the protagonist is injured (injured), he becomes Ghatak (dangerous) and the elements, good and bad, conspire to support his cause. Here Vidyut is led into the classroom by a stellar support cast that includes Danish Hussain, Dibyendu Bhattacharya and Rajesh Tailang.

As a conscientious journalist, Tailang, who is modeled on a senior journalist, adds some novelty to the storytelling. In a high-altitude environment, the always-reliable Sheeba, in the form of Thakurji, attempts to undermine the morally and sexually ambiguous villain. It works for a while but eventually, it seems that Thakur ji was a male character on paper and hence there is generation loss during gender change.

Unlike the straight-jacketed first, which was harder to invest in, part two is a bit more layered and with comments on the criminal-police nexus in Uttar Pradesh, an area that hasn’t been explored much in popular Hindi cinema. From the color of the seat cover of Thakur ji’s SUV to the caste and religious equations, Kabir has given several pointers to slam the politics of the area.

But like the esoteric novels, the film does exactly what it complains against. It comments on the visual outlook of electronic news, but finds itself hard to avoid. It wants us to consider the social embarrassment of survivors of physical assault and action against juvenile offenders of rape, without considering the consequences of taking the law into their own hands. This is some ordeal, ordeal! The last page of the chapter states that the next section will address this.

Khuda Hafiz 2 – Agni Pariksha is currently running in theatres.