Yaara is an action-drama Movie directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia and starring Amit Sadh, Vidyut Jammwal, Vijay Varma, Kenny Basumatary and Shruti Haasan.

Confusing and pace-less

Yaara is a movie about friendship and betrayal. It’s about the Chaukdi Gang who fight against an injustice system and always have each other’s backs – no matter what.

This movie is utterly confusing and seriously lacks pace. Spanning over five decades, the movie meanders and loses its way somewhere and the audience, the only surviving passenger of this train, is left utterly clueless as to what is going on.

There’s a leftist militant theme in the movie which comes in from nowhere and leaves you scratching your head. That is, until you realise that it was brought up to introduce Phagun to his lady love – Sukanya.

As with most movies like these, Sukanya’s Character is utterly hollow, and there’s not much for her to do rather than cry or be angry. It is also sad to see how a character, which is shown to be strong, brave and independent does not seem to really be into the cause. She’s fine when she’s in the comfort of a safe space, but the moment things go south, she runs to Phagun for support. Although infuriating at first, she does not get enough screen space later on and you forget about her.

The same can be said for the main characters as well. They’re all a cliched rendition of your typical “bro group.” Vijay Varma’s character is not explored enough, other than the fact that he’s quirky and goofy. The same goes for Assamese actor Kenny Basumatary, who is just known as that guy from Nepal. It’s honestly sad and definitely a lost opportunity.

Jammwal and Sadh play the main characters in the movie, and despite what anyone says, you will realise that Vijay Varma and Kenny Basumatary aren’t as “important”. So, when the time comes for people to die and add the emotional push for the “mains” to make their move, you know who is/are the first ones to go.

That being said, the fun parts of Yaara are probably the montages that provide the backstory to the characters. Because the moment the movie comes back to its narrative storyline, it falters immensely and cannot keep its pace. They start to feel dragged until another montage sequence falls on your lap. The formative years of the gang are nice to watch regardless, although I can’t say the same about the music in the film. It’s nothing special or memorable, and you’ll forget them the moment they’re over.

There’s not much that holds on to your interest for long. There’s a twist at the end of the movie, but the rest of it is so dragged out that it arrives way too late and you don’t care anymore. It also doesn’t come as a shock because if you pay attention, the incident will strike you odd from the get-go. There are references to incidents, movies and film stars that might trigger a happy response, but it’s not enough to make you reminisce about the good ol’ days.

Summing up: Yaara

With Vidyut Jammwal in the helm, you know the action is going to be quite fun to watch. And it is – but only when Jammwal is present and doing the action. Otherwise it’s a bit dull. Adding to it, the editing doesn’t do anything for Yaara and, coupled with the screenplay, leaves the movie patchy and not fun.

If anything, Vidyut Jammwal’s movies prove to be great entertainers. However, I cannot say the same for Yaara. Although the friendship between the four friends is at the forefront, which works for the first half, it feels too dragged out after some time.

The movie has its moments, but they’re too few and far between. You can watch this movie for Vidyut Jammwal, he’s clearly the star of the show.

Yaara is streaming on Zee5.

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