Drona Movie Review: All Body, No Soul

Director Goldie Behl proves with the film Drona that Bollywood has the ability and the skill to make a fantasy film on a lavish scale. The film has been lavishly mounted with superb production values. The special effects are quite amazing. All the actors do a superb job as well. Drona has everything going for it, except for the fact that it lacks a soul. It has been very well crafted, but it all goes awry because of the lack of a coherent script. That is little sad, because one can see the amount of hard work and the oodles of money that have been pumped into the project. The after taste of the movie has lots to do with the special effects and the grand look of the movie but very little to do with emotion. It doesn't move one, despite leaving one in admiration for its beauty. No matter what the story and whoever the protagonist, a superhero or a fantasy character, a film has to have a heart or a soul. While not leaving one exactly cold, Goldie's Drona fails in that one essential department. The other aspect is that film fails to create a suitably strong antagonist. While the character of Drona has been built up superbly, the character of Riz Raizada, Drona's enemy and the villain of the piece, is not villainous enough to justify the scale of the film and its action. It kind of topples the balance of the film. The blame for this should be shared equally by the film's writers there are three of them here Jaydeep Sarkar, Rohini Killough and Behl himself. One feels that the trios were carried away by the character of Drona and almost neglected the creation of a menacing villain. The character of Raizada, played Kay Kay Menon, lacks that x factor, and verges more on the comic and the ridiculous. Part of the film's action falls flat on this count itself. If it's a battle royale, then the two fighters must be equally strong. A third problem with the film, is that it seems stretched beyond reason. A little crispness would have helped. The character of Drona, is that of a superhero, who does not realize his own identity till it is revealed to him. And then he comes into his own. Nothing original there. In this, the film follows the premise of other superhero stories that have come before. Drona, or Aditya (Abhishek Bachchan), as he is known, has been brought up by foster parents and has led a more or less loveless existence. His normal life is turned upside down with the entry of the villain, in the form of the evil magician Riz Raizada, who is after the secret amrit. But for that, he has to defeat Drona. He does not know who Drona is. But a chance encounter one day with Aditya, tells Riz that he has found his enemy. He recognizes Drona by the help of a bracelet that the latter is wearing. Escaping from the clutches of Riz, Aditya is on the run when he is saved by Sonia (Priyanka Chopra). She makes him aware of his true identity and his mission in life. Aditya is thus reborn as Drona. Sonia takes Aditya to his mother, Queen Jayati (Jaya Bachchan) and all is revealed to him. But Riz is never far behind. Since the character of Riz is that of a sorcerer, there is a lot of magic happening and the special effects really work here. They are quite spectacular but at the end of the day, are just one part of the film and not it's whole. If the film succeeds in this department, it fails in the others. The film's music by Dhruv Ghanekar is just about average. Nothing memorable is created in the music department. However, Sameer Arya's cinematography is good on the whole. The one area where the film really works is in the acting department. Abhishek Bachchan, seen on screen after a really long time, is excellent. He not only looks the part but puts in a very effortless performance. There is a lot of conviction and honesty in his portrayal which comes across. He has grown to become quite a seasoned performer and is a treat to watch. He is well supported by Priyanka Chopra in the role of Sonia. One can see the effort that the actress has put in for the role. Kay Kay, unfortunately is not given enough scope to reveal his talent. In a role, which has been poorly written, the actor fails to create the wow impact that he is generally wont to create. Jaya Bachchan puts in a muted, mature performance as Drona's mother. Maybe it is something about the mother son chemistry, but the veteran actress leaves an impact even in the bit role that she has. Drona is the kind of film which will definitely hook you with its theme, its treatment, its style and its looks. But it is unable to follow up on that with an absorbing storyline.