Mohenjo Daro movie review: Hrithik Roshan's fierce performance adds more charm to this monumental epic

Pic Courtesy: Movie Still

So one of the biggest releases of 2016 is here! Ashutosh Gowariker's 'Mohenjo Daro' starring desi Greek God Hrithik Roshan released amid much anticipation and expectations from his fans. While Bollywood used social media platform to promote Akshay Kumar's 'Rustom', which also shared the same release date—this clearly did not affect the dancing superstar much.

Now, coming back to the movie. There were a lot many apprehensions about what and how the film will be projected, but now that the cat is out of the bag—we have a lot to scribble down.

The filmmaker takes us back in time, and it seems like just another day. The film opens up in 2016 BC, and we know our history class has just begun. So, automatically we start recalling the Indus Valley civilisation—mention of Harappan culture, the significance, and beautification of the majestic Mohenjo Daro runs through our mind.

Hrithik plays Sarman—reminding us of David from the famous 'David and Goliath'. He is young, restless, eager to help the distressed and yet he is massively muscular and athletic. Sarman is brawny and brainy at the same time. The first scene where he kills the bestial crocodile and is hailed among his tribe has been shot beautifully.

The film is a one-man army, riding high on Hrithik's shoulders. He has tried his best to make it look as believable as possible. The kind of effort this superstar has put shows through the narrative—be it the most clapped scene in the hall (where he kills those 'Bakar Zokar' named cannibals) or even the last part where he swims like a god through a torrential flood.

The storyline is basic. How a boy is taken back to his roots and helps to dethrone a baddie to save his 'motherland from his clutches. In this journey of awakening, we find mentions of the righteous river Sindhu and how that civilisation found the holy river Ganga.

Former beauty queen Pooja Hegde as Chaani looks fine in her debut performance, who however could have been told to act a certain way, especially in crucial scenes such as the one where pujari is being cremated or even when she is about to reveal the identity of Sarman. The impact was less, and maybe that's because it's her first time.

But, there remains an inescapable problem which can't be ignored. And that is loopholes in the script. Ashutosh has written the script of 'Mohenjo Daro' and it becomes hard to digest after a point to overlook basic flaws such as 'how come the people of Mohenjo Daro believe the truth about Sarman when they were not even told about it'. Also, these people were the ones who didn't believe his father and when Chaani just mentions he is the one, they blindly believe without questioning about his past.

Also, what looked jarring was the costume given to Chaani. Why was it a cleavage revealing outfit at all? When others were not given a similar style. To show her above in rank, could not be a reason—as the makers could have styled her in a way which looked appropriate and didn't dilute the main subject.

Besides, these flaws, 'Mohenjo Daro' was smooth like silk in terms of cinematography by CK Muraleedharan. Music by maestro A R Rahman and especially the recurrent background theme was magical to the ears. Kabir Bedi as Maham and Arunoday Singh as Moonja played the negative force with much conviction. It was also a delight to hear the heavy baritone of Kabir Bedi.

Overall, do watch 'Mohenjo Daro' for Hrithik Roshan only. But keep your history textbooks miles away from it!