Movie review: Is 'Dabangg 3' worth the 7-year wait for Salman Khan fans?

Wood splinters, bottles crack and villains fall like flies when Chulbul Pandey takes centre-stage in a fight. After all as portrayed in Prabhu Deva's Dabangg 3, Salman Khan's character is not just another ordinary cop, but a desi Hulk, who can easily bash up hundreds of villains single-handedly.
Salman who returns as the cheeky, corrupt cop with a Robin Hood like persona in Dabangg 3 is in great form. He is the larger-than-life super cop, who is also an extremely romantic and devoted husband to wife, Rajjo (Sonakshi Sinha), and a total family man. So what if he has a propensity to shake a leg at the club with Warina Hussain for Munna Badnam Hua? After all who better to turn 'item boy' than a muscular Khan, who still looks amazing at 53?

Was the wait worth it for Dabangg 3, is the question. If you are a fan of Khan, the answer is a resounding, yes. There is enough and more to keep you glued to the screens  - high octane action, catchy dialogues, laugh-out-loud comic scenes and romantic moments. All in all Dabangg 3 is a well-packaged entertainer.
Prabhu Deva delivers exactly what was promised to Salman Khan fans with Dabangg 3. The icing on the cake has to be Kannada superstar, Kichcha Sudeep, who plays Chulbul's arch nemesis, Bali Singh. Sudeep is menacing and effective as the villain who falls for Chulbul's love interest Khushi. Saiee Manjrekar, who makes her Bollywood debut in this movie, is extremely well cast as the fetching village belle with ambitions of becoming a doctor. Sonakshi is her usual chirpy and feisty self as Rajjo and Arbaaz Khan as Chulbul's brother, Makkhi, is also spot on.
Which leaves us with Khan, who should have looked ridiculous rehashing the same character of the man in khaki, and romancing a 20-something girl (Khushi) on top of it, but such is the charm of Salman that he pulls it off effortlessly.
And if you are looking for some social messaging to go along with the masala elements, there is loads of it. From a statutory warning against cigarette and gutka, mouthed by Khan, to his anti-dowry stance and a message on water conservation and a dig at demonetization at the very end, there is ample messaging to be found in the movie.
The only loose plot point, as far as we are concerned, is the fact that Rajjo is shown as being ignorant of Chulbul's past love interest Khushi, which is odd especially considering that the two women knew each other. There are also a couple of awkward moments when Chulbul forces two men to kiss each other and his observation about how he would make an overweight woman lose weight, both of which come across as highly inappropriate. 
If you are a fan of Salman Khan movies, which is as formulaic as they come, you'd no doubt enjoy this. Even if you don't count yourself a fan, you'd find Dabangg 3 a highly entertaining masala movie which is true to its genre. Can one expect anything more from a Salman Khan movie?
Movie: Dabangg 3 
Director: Prabhu Deva 
Cast: Salman Khan, Kichcha Sudeep, Sonakshi Sinha, Arbaaz Khan, Mahesh Manjrekar, Saiee Manjrekar 
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 (For Salman Khan fans!)