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Pushpa 2 Review: Allu Arjun's swagger makes this tedious film entertaining

The film stars Arjun, Rashmika Mandanna and Faahadh Faasil in lead roles

Published: Fri 6 Dec 2024, 10:30 AM

Updated: Sun 8 Dec 2024, 11:48 AM

  • By
  • Lekha Menon

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Directed by: Sukumar

Starring: Allu Arjun, Rashmika Mandanna, Fahadh Faasil

Rating: 2.5 stars

Does this review or analysis really matter? Reeling under the after-effects of three hours of watching Pushpa 2: The Rule, the rational part of your brain is still tempted to analyse the merits and demerits of all that just unfolded on screen. Realisation hits hard soon enough. The pan-India genre, of which the Pushpa franchise is a leading member, doesn’t really need validation from reviewers. In just a day of its release, the movie crossed approximately Dh7.3 million (INR 170 crore) in box-office collections. So any critical analysis is likely to be met with a sneer from diehard Allu Arjun fanboys and girls.

That said, the way Pushpa has managed to strike a chord with audiences in India and overseas deserves a deeper look.

The first part, Pushpa: The Rise, was released in 2021 and established the background of the titular character (Pushpa Raj, played by Allu Arjun), marking his incredible rise from a lowly labourer to the top of a red sandalwood smuggling syndicate. The all-powerful Pushpa’s biggest grouse was — no, not his criminal career — but the fact that he was not considered worthy enough for a surname by his step-family because he was an ‘illegitimate’ child. Yet, the hiccup does not stop his growth in the crime world earning him many enemies, most notably Bhanwar Singh Shekhawat, a ruthless cop. The film had ended on a tantalising note, promising a face-off between Pushpa and Shekhawat in the sequel.

Pushpa: The Rise created box office hysteria, catapulting Arjun, an already popular Telugu actor, into stardom stratosphere. No wonder, the anticipation for the second part had reached feverish levels. But is it worth it?

The positive note is that Pushpa 2: The Rule genuinely continues the story. Unlike many Indian films that create follow-ups solely to cash in on a popular title, this one builds upon the narrative set in the first installment.

Pushpa has risen in ranks to become a dreaded smuggler with international reach. The movie begins with a bizarre sequence in a port in Japan (why Japan?) where our hero singlehandedly bashes up a few caricaturish Japanese port officials and workers. There is absolutely no relevance of this scene to the rest of the film other than perhaps giving some Southeast Asian struggling actors a chance to act in an Indian flick.

Cut to Andhra Pradesh, where Pushpa’s rule reigns supreme. He changes chief ministers at will, flies to Maldives to strike deals worth INR 5,000 crore, buys a helicopter belonging to his client leaving the latter to travel back in a tempo (why is a tempo taken to Maldives? Don’t ask!) and fools the entire law and order machinery to ensure his smuggled goods cross Indian borders smoothly. His political machinations evokes admiration from a fawning journalist who says ‘Siddappa might be CM but Pushpa is King.’ (Yeah right, no wonder the state of journalism is what it is currently!).

Pushpa’s bravado brings him into conflict with Shekhawat, who is seeking revenge for his humiliation four years ago. Frankly, this segment should have been the highlight. The pre-interval scenes, where Pushpa and Shekhawat challenge each other in a battle of wits and brute power, are pretty amusing. Pushpa’s forced apology to Shekhawat, followed by his immediate comeback after feeling remorseful about bowing to his nemesis, is actually quite engaging. You almost wonder if the entire storyline is a subtle commentary on men’s fragile egos and the idiotic things they do to serve it. However, Pushpa isn’t that kind of film.

Had it been handled with the finesse it deserved, the Pushpa-Shekhawat confrontation could have delivered genuine mass moments worthy of whistles. Alas, it remains a missed opportunity because director Sukumar isn’t interested in delving into the egotism and warped mental landscapes of borderline 'psychotic' men. On the contrary, this franchise aims to glorify and deify Allu Arjun. Hence, despite the formidable enemy, the script mandates that Pushpa emerges the winner, no matter what the situation is. It is a huge disservice because Shekhawat is played by the brilliant Fahadh Faasil whose quirky characters are legendary (remember Kumbalangi Nights?). Here, the actor makes the most of an ill-written role but the screenplay lets him down. Like the rest of the cast, he exists so that Pushpa can shine.

Thankfully, Allu Arjun makes it all worth it. Larger-than-life seems to be a misnomer for this galactic hero. He is larger than the universe. Every single misdeed and criminal act is not just glossed over but celebrated. He looms large in every frame and not without merit. Arjun exudes energy and embodies Pushpa so well that it is impossible to imagine any other actor doing the job.

One tiny change from the earlier movie is that women aren’t mistreated too much. The previous film had several problematic scenes of female representation which fetched it bad reviews, so the makers perhaps decided to compensate in this one. How? By choosing equally regressive themes! For instance, the hyper-masculine Pushpa is shown to be hopelessly devoted to his wife but the inherent patriarchy comes to the fore. A character advises him, ‘A man who listens to his wife has never succeeded’. A few scenes and some life lessons to the gentleman later, Pushpa retorts, “I wanted to show what happens when a man listens to his wife’. Then there is an over-sexualised item number and a fight sequence that gives the actor a chance to save his niece-in-distress from goons. All of which seem straight out of the ‘80s and ‘90s filmmaking playbook.

Not that anything else seems contemporary! The music is loud, the editing at several places is disjointed (it could have done some serious trimming by at least 30 minutes) and the action choreography basically includes characters flying in air and Pushpa beating the bad guys to pulp.

All of this takes place over a mammoth 205 minutes and while it’s entertaining and pacy, the overall experience makes for a tedious watch. But then again, why have expectations of great cinema when you can get swag, more swag, heavy-duty dialogues and some more swag! The opening credits introduce Allu Arjun as ‘icon star’. And that says it all. He is now coming to a theatre near you with the third part of the saga. Gear up!



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