New Delhi: Two boys are born at the same time, one to a clerk's wife and the other to business tycoon Jindal's daughter, during a night of heavy downpours, portending some awful event. The 'big-hearted' chooses to trade his son for the deceased Jindal heir when the latter turns out to be stillborn. But, when the baby eventually appears to be alive, he decides to keep him and allow his own son to alter his fate by becoming the 'chirag' of an affluent family.
A nurse who was previously involved in the plan witnesses everything, but she unintentionally falls from the hospital building and suffers a coma. This is how the remake of Allu Arjun's 'Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo', ‘Shehzada’, featuring Kartik Aaryan, gets started.
Does any of that ring a bell? The movie, which is billed as a family entertainer and brings back the spirit of early '90s movies, will take you back to a time when such plot points appeared in every other movie. Almost all of the film's key scenes have been faithfully replicated in ‘Shehzada’, which is a true remake of the Telugu original. From the introductory scene of the protagonist to the conflicts between Bantu (Kartik Aaryan) and his father Paresh Rawal (Valmiki) are identical.
The choreographed action scenes in the original are quite good—almost better than any song. Also, like Rohit Dhawan with the screenplay, Kartik Aaryan-starrer stays true to the formula that had previously worked. Sachin Khedekar is also cast in the same role as he played in the Telugu blockbuster possibly with the intention of keeping the comedy flick as close to 2020 as practicable.
Despite having to deal with his father's unpleasant behaviour towards him as a kid, Bantu grows up to be a brave and self-assured adult. The premise suggests that it is due to the "insanely rich" DNA he inherited from his biological father, Randeep Nanda, played by Ronit Roy. Even so, it shouldn't have come as a surprise for a movie that got off to a troubling start with child-swapping and almost brutal murder.
Speaking of problematic scenes, the Allu Arjun movie also had a bunch of them. One instance is when the central protagonist first encounters Pooja Hedge's character, he can't help but ogle at her legs. And continues to act almost pervertedly fixated on her long legs, which are repeatedly shown in close-up. Rohit Dhawan skips over that scene in his film, probably keeping in mind that it is being made in 2023. And just as you begin to breathe a sigh of relief, you hear Bantu addressing Samar (Kriti Sanon), his soon-to-be boss, a 'tota'. Face palm!
Upbeat soundtracks and the quirky moments starring Kartik Aaryan keep the movie going until the ruthless drug lord, who is portrayed by Sunny Hinduja, tries to kill Randeep, just before the interval. Bantu saves him and then goes to uncover the truth about his life. The unexpected turn of events alters the direction of his destiny and gives him a mission in life: to protect his real family.
There isn't much of a surprise in the movie for anyone who has seen 'Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo'. Kartik tries to portray an angry young man, but the action scenes, which Allu Arjun pulls off with ease, occasionally appear downright comical. He enters the Jindal mansion and proves to be the kind of heir they have never had. Raj, played by Ankur Rathee, the real-life son of Valmiki, serves as a prop to highlight the virtues of Bantu.
When it comes to performances, the ensemble cast, which includes actors like Paresh Rawal, Manisha Koirala, and Ronit Roy, is inexcusably underutilised. Regardless of the family Bantu comes from, the supporting cast appears to be there to endorse him and enable him to become a greater hero than one may expect a 25-year-old lad to be able to be.
After seeing Sunny Hinduja in 'Aspirants', it is heartbreaking to witness such talent frittered away by offering a character that would barely be noticed if it were dropped from the narrative. Considering he simply carries an umbrella as a weapon, his entire build-up comes off as pompous given that he is supposed to be a deadly villian. Without leaving anything out, Aaryan also thrashed the thugs with just his bare hands in the old style. That leads one to wonder why the makers never felt that guns weren't really that out of date to include.
'Shehzada' fits in perfectly with the kind of movies, which are the trend lately in Bollywood as it attempts to regain its box office dominance. If you miss watching Govinda on the big screen back in the '90s era, Kartik Aaryan's film won't likely let you down. The rest, who are actually seeking a forward-thinking family entertainer, may have to wait a little longer.