Daddy movie review: This is why Arjun Rampal deserves more recognition

RATING: 3.5

MOVIE: Daddy

CAST: Arjun Rampal, Aishwarya Rajesh, Nishikant Kamat, Anand Ingale, Rajesh Shringarpure, Farhan Akhtar

DIRECTOR: Ashim Ahluwali

GENRE: Bollywood crime thriller

It is often said that no one is born a criminal but circumstances turn them into one. Arjun Rampal-starrer Daddy reflects the same notion, along with some powerful performances and an interesting plot.

STORYLINE

Based on the life of gangster-turned-politician Arun Gawli, Daddy presents Arjun Rampal in the lead role. Although it is inspired by true incidents, the plot of the film appears to be pretty similar to most other Bollywood underworld movies.

The son of a factory worker, Arun belongs to a very poor family. Things worsen for him and his kin when the factory where his father works is shut down all of a sudden. Eventually, Arun and his not-so-good companions resort to petty crimes. However, things soon take a terrible turn, and in no time Arun and his friends become murderers.

In their pursuit to earn more and quick money, Arun and his team come across Maqsood bhai (Farhan Akhtar), whose character appears to take inspiration from underworld don Dawood Ibrahim.

This is where Arun actually gets into the world of gangsters and forms a gang called BRA. However, as the underworld is a one way path, Arun faces a series of hurdles even when he wanted to quit.

The movie is majorly shown in flashback, narrating the journey of a shy slum lad to a gangster, and then becoming a politician, widely known by the moniker Daddy. He is shown as a tough man who is the saviour of the commoners, but has run afoul of just with top criminals but also with the police.

PERFORMANCES

Arjun Rampal has appeared as the sole lead after a long time, and he has certainly done justice to the intense character of Arun Gawli, adopting his mannerisms to a T. He is one of the most underrated actors in the industry as of now, and this performance of his validates that. Arjun steals the show in this crime thriller, with his calm but intense portrayal of the character.

Tamil actress Aishwarya Rajesh has made her Bollywood debut with Daddy, playing the character of Arun's wife. She has a good supporting role, and has done justice to it. Others, including Nishikant Kamat (Inspector Vijaykar), Anand Ingale (Babu) and Rajesh Shringarpure (Rama) have also done a commendable job. Farhan has very limited screen space, but he too oozes the powerful don's aura.

POSITIVES

Daddy is all in all an Arjun Rampal movie. This is one of his best performances till date. The movie hardly gets monotonous as there are no unnecessary songs in it. Also, the director has kept track of the minutest of details: The characters' costume, looks, and the entire ambiance remind us of the 1980s.

The direction requires a special mention here. The storyline and the performances are the USP of Daddy. It has good dose of action as well.

NEGATIVES

The movie appears drag on in the second half, where the director could have shortened certain sequences. The cinematography is pretty ordinary.

VERDICT

You may or may not sympathise with Arun Gawli after watching Daddy, but you will definitely feel that Arjun Rampal deserves more recognition.

Daddy is an entertaining crime thriller that is worth your money.