It is 1990, the time of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Many Indians in the country suffer due the sudden turn of events when the Iraqi military invade Kuwait. Rich and the affluent are turned paupers in no time and this is exactly the situation of Ranjit Katiyal. The consummate businessman that he is, Ranjit always complains about the state of affairs in India and is a proud Kuwaiti than an Indian. When things take a u-turn in Kuwait, he teams up with influential and powerful friends of his to carve out a seemingly impossible evacuation plan for the Indians stuck in Kuwait.
Language:
Hindi
Running Time:
124 min
Rating:
U/A
Release date:
21 January 2016
Directed by:
Raja Krishna Menon
Produced by:
Nikhil Advani
Monisha Adwani
Aruna Bhatia
Madhu G. Bhojwani
Bhushan Kumar
Vikram Malhotra
Krishan Kumar
Written by:
Raja Krishna Menon
Suresh Nair
Rahul Nangia
Ritesh Shah
Starring:
Akshay Kumar
Nimrat Kaur
Feryna Wazheir
Inaamulhaq
Lena
Purab Kohli
Prakash Belawadi
Music by:
Amaal Mallik
Ankit Tiwari
Arijit Dutta
Shot by:
Priya Seth
Editing by:
Hemanti Sarkar
Distributed by:
Prateek Entertainment

What’s Hot

  • The story in itself deserves all the credits it gets with it being the largest civilian evacuation in history. It shows the sense of national pride, responsibility and above all, national pride in somewhat the Argo way.
  • The direction by Raja Krishna Menon and screenplay by him and his crew are pivotal in creating the tense sequences and gripping encounters between Ranjit and the Iraqi militiamen. The interactions of Ranjit with the quietly menacing Major played by Inaamulhaq are sure to send shivers down your spine.
  • Akshay Kumar has once again stepped out of his comfort zone to play a composed and responsible Ranjit Katiyal. Nimrat Kaur as Amrita has also excelled in playing a wife who doesn’t stick to the age-old template. Purab Kohli and Prakash Belawadi stand tall for their unique and stunning performances.
  • The dialogues are perfectly written to match the situations at hand. Be it Ranjit’s rant about the then Indian government or his plea for evacuation with delegating officials, Amrita’s fitting reply to the quirky George Kutty, are fitting examples of exemplary writing.
  • Last but not least, the cinematography by Priya Seth deserves credit for capturing enemy lines with arduously fervent angles and also showing a good detail of rescue camps.

What’s Not

  • The film does take liberties with the way it portrays the true story and also bends the facts if you go by this. Similar to Talvar perhaps it is best to just see this as a film rather than try to come to terms with the history behind the actual incident.

Badges

Screenplay
Acting
Dialogues

Verdict

Verdict Stamp

Airlift in all its essence is like a well-oiled machine. With a gripping real-life story and a narrative as nail biting as it can get, it is surely a winner, for it has all the essentials that a thriller needs.