Akira review: Sonakshi’s action thriller fails to pack a punch

Film: Akira
Rating: 2/5

Akira, directed by AR Murugadoss, is a loose remake of Tamil film Mouna Guru (2011) which puts a female character at the centre of a mainstream action thriller.

While this was a great starting point from where the film could have taken off, Murugadoss fails to give this idea depth or impact. He touches upon social issues like violence against women, care of the disabled, and the loopholes in the system, but it is all on the surface.

The film takes us first into the childhood of Akira (Sonakshi Sinha) in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, where an incident of violence against a girl inspires her father (Atul Kulkarni) to teach Akira how to fight. Akira learns the martial arts and encouraged (or rather forced) by her father decides to use her skills to fight perpetrators of violent crime. It lands her in a remand home for three years.

Fourteen years later, a grown-up Akira and her mother (Smita Jaykar) move to Mumbai to live with her brother. She wants to avoid any kind of trouble in her new college, but gets sucked into a crime plot involving four corrupt police officers, who can go to any lengths to hide their misdeeds. 

ACP Rane (Anurag Kashyap) is a weed-smoking, corrupt, murderous cop leading the troupe. Kashyap’s rawness helps him stay afloat and come across as a cold, evil man.

Konkona Sen Sharma, who plays a pregnant righteous cop, delivers an understated performance.

Sinha plays a character that speaks less and let's her punches do the talking. She does look convincing in the fight sequences, even though they come across as overly choreographed. Sinha, who has never shown her range as an actress so far, gives it her best shot. Despite her sincerity, her character fails to create an impact. You don’t feel bad or sad for her when she is down, nor do you cheer for her when she beats up the bad guys.

Akira is a convoluted story full of highly improbable incidents. How does Akira's family believe a random doctor and cop who say she needs to be in a mental asylum? Shouldn't they know better or get a second opinion? How do four police officers commit a series of murders in Mumbai and get away with it for as long as they do? How does Rane, who kills people at the drop of a hat, leave Akira alive? Guess the film would have ended by the interval then and we would have been spared!

Apart from several illogical and uninspiring twists, Akira also spells every little thing out. For example: the meaning of Akira in Sanskrit is graceful strength and the angry Akira is a good girl because she wants to serve the deaf-mute. Ridden with cliches, the film never connects with you emotionally and therein lies its nemesis.

Director: AR Murugadoss
Producers: AR Murugadoss and Fox Star Studios
Cast: Sonakshi Sinha, Anurag Kashyap, Konkona Sen Sharma
Music: Vishal-Shekhar
Runtime: 139 mins