What are the ingredients of a superhero flick? A normal guy discovering his hidden superpowers, a personal conflict, a super villain trying to take over the world, a romantic angle and some top-notch special effects.
Unfortunately Goldie Behl finds it too great a task to get these tried and tested ingredients right in Drona.
Instead, he has put all his efforts and resources in giving the film a grand look — minus a soul. Drona is the most boring superhero to have hit the big screen.
An overly grown and wimpy Aditya (Abhishek Bachchan) lives with his foster family somewhere in Europe and his life is threatened by an evil sorcerer, Riz Raizada (Kay Kay Menon).
Sonia (Priyanka Chopra), Aditya’s unknown bodyguard not only saves his life but also helps him transform Aditya into superhero Drona.
Dud plot
At his ancestral home in India, Aditya meets his mother, Queen Jayati (Jaya Bachchan) and learns about his roots.
Aditya aka Drona then goes on to face Riz in an epic battle before Riz manages to attain immortality.
The film rests on Jaideep Sarkar’s storyline, which just doesn’t manage to captivate the audience despite the use of some decent visual effects and opulent sets.
It appears Behl was so excited about making a magical adventure that he allowed Sarkar to come up with any sort of hackneyed superhero plot.
Weak of character
The characterisations are poor. Riz seems to be a cross between The Joker and evil magicians of yesteryear’s Bollywood flicks while Drona is a lousy superhero who can be best forgotten.
What’s worse is that the film moves lazily, testing your patience. In some cases it even forced some of the viewers to head towards the exit before the good-versus-evil finale.
Abhishek doesn’t fit the role of a superhero as his body language lacks the fire to depict such a character. Chopra looks good with the kohl in her eyes — she is easy on our eyes as well, though her acting takes a backseat.
Jaya seems to be forced to do the much-avoidable cameo as Abhishek’s mum. Menon tries his best to impress but when you don’t have a well-written plot, all the acting talent cannot save the film.
Last straw, music
Dhruv Ghanekar’s music adds to the agony. The production value is top-notch, with a brilliant action sequence shot in the middle of a desert.
I would prefer watching Abhishek’s father, Amitabh Bachchan’s flop fantasy adventure, Ajooba, any day. At least it doesn’t tax my brains and transports me to ha-ha land rather than Drona’s mind-numbing land.
Abdulla Mahmood is a UAE-based freelance writer
