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It's great to look at, with brilliantly art-directed frames bursting with detail. Which is all dashed exasperating, considering just how good this film could have been. And, as said, the film gets more than a bit long in the tooth, hinging on a final twist that isn't too hard to see coming.

Not the sort of man you want to celebrate, no. The cop Aamir plays from behind a Hulk Hogan moustache is doggedly dour, frequently unreasonable, and a really bad husband. The case - of an actor driving off the highway and into the sea - is only marginally intriguing since the police never really explore its mechanics, and the suspects it throws up mostly insignificant. It starts off well, but simmers far too long before it gets to the boil. There are a few essentials for a police procedural film, all rather basic: either the crime should be a stupefying one, one which raises many a "how in the world" question and flummoxes audience and investigator or the suspects should be interesting and complex, those whose motivations become clearer only when the film gets less murky or the investigator himself should be a compelling protagonist, someone who makes you either care about himself or the case, ideally rooting for his success.Īnd if all else fails, then it should be thrilling enough to hide the lack of the above.Īlas, Talaash ticks none of these boxes. Or, at the very least, made for more fun.Īllow me to make my case, then, without once discussing the film's plot. It's a somber, well-assembled film in contrast to the quick and flashy schlock that would have been doled out by the aforementioned merchants of middlebrow masala, and while the film's craft - and the acting chops shared by its considerable cast - can't at all be denied, it must also be said that perhaps the trashier approach may have worked better for this material. To give credit where due, director Reema Kagti and her crew show significant flair in terms of creating atmosphere.Ĭinematographer Mohanan has always dealt strikingly well with shadows and darkness, and the film emerges as a fine looking mood-piece.

(The only key character in Talaash who isn't a top actor is, actually, the one who plays a top actor.) Just yank out the invariably catchy Pritam soundtrack, replace Emraan Hashmi or Randeep Hooda with Aamir Khan and throw in major heroines where Vishesh Films would have cast unfamiliar models. Which isn't to say Bhatt actually made it (though he or Mohit Suri or Pooja Bhatt may well have at some point, who dare keep count) but that it has a story built on the exact same pulpy foundations. Make no mistake, Talaash is a Vikram Bhatt film. Raja Sen feels Talaash is well made and strongly acted but is not as enjoyable to watch as it deserved to be.