Akira Sharma (Sonakshi Sinha), is gracefully strong, chooses martial arts over d

ancing when she is 11 years old after realising the value of physical power with
the inspiration of her father who is shown as some deaf mute person.
Her cousin suddenly turns out from nowhere and decides to take Akira and her mot
her to Mumbai,years after her father died.
In Mumbai a group of cops headed by ACP Govind Rane (Anurag Kashyap)are taking t
he law for a ride.

A little girl learns early that submitting to wrong-doing is not right, even if
you have to suffer for it. Good tip, and Akira (the remake of a Tamil actioner)
begins with promise, showing us how girls can choose karate over kathak and flower
.
Akira (Sonakshi Sinha), no relation to Kurosawa, makes the journey from a colour
ful Rajasthan chota shehar to mahanagari Mumbai, and runs slam-bang into a convolute
d plot involving a murder and missing cash and a bunch of corrupt cops, headed b
y the vicious ACP Rane (Anurag Kashyap, enjoying himself hugely and being extrem
ely effective, even if very far from a Marathi-speaking native: I wouldn t like to
meet Rane in a dark alley).

Rane s khaki-clad cohorts who go about looting and pillaging and shooting innocent
s in cold blood get a lot of play: is this film the reason why the latest edict
on not depicting the police in bad light been announced?
Anurag Kashyap plays ACP Rane in the film, and is seen enjoying himself hugely a
nd being extremely effective, even if very far from a Marathi-speaking native: I
wouldn t like to meet Rane in a dark alley. Akira review: Anurag Kashyap plays AC
P Rane in the film, and is seen enjoying himself hugely and being extremely effe
ctive.
There is a sole good cop in the movie, Konkona Sen Sharma s very pregnant, very dedi
cated officer ( clearly modeled on Francis McDormand s character in Fargo ), but she
is only one against many.
Also read | Akira audience reaction: Sonakshi Sinha-starrer gets positive respon
se
Having a young woman kick serious butt should be a matter of joy: what s not to li
ke about strong female characters in male-dominated mainstream cinema? But what
do you do if you are saddled with the most craven plot this side of the Vindhyas
, which gives you wings, and then sets about clipping them? Sonakshi Sinha does
a good job working the limitations of her role, but she alone cannot help this f
ilm from falling into a sinkhole.
Also read | Akira quick movie review: Sonakshi Sinha breaks bones, breaks stereo
types
Right from the beginning, director A R Murugadoss provides warning signals: a fe
male using her fists cannot go scot-free. She has to be seen suffering, otherwis
e how will the mass audience flock to the film?
Also read | Akira box office collection day 1: Sonakshi Sinha film sees slow ope
ning
Watch: 5 reasons to watch Akira here.

So if Akira stands up to acid-throwing bullies, we are meant to rightfully appla

ud her, but that applause is quickly tempered by her having to be disciplined: f
irst in a remand home and then in a mental asylum. And for a female protagonist to
be bloody but unbowed, and be the last woman standing? That will take some doin
g: this watered-down female version Ghajini is not that film.
Akira (Sonakshi Sinha) stays in Jodhpur with her nuclear family. Her life change
s when a local vagabond throws acid on the face of her fellow college goer. Affe
cted by this incident, her father helps her in learning the art of self-defence
by enrolling her in a martial arts school. Meanwhile, Akira turns rebellious and
decides to take revenge from the gang of trouble makers. Unfortunately, the law
finds her guilty for her act and sends her to a children remand cell for three
years.
Fast forward to 14 years, the story moves on and Akira is all grown up now. Mean
while, Akira loses her father and has to now move in with her brother who lives
in Mumbai with his snobbish wife and a kid for her higher studies. On her first
day in the new college, Akira is ragged by her classmates. After ignoring them f
or a few days and minding her own business, Akira loses her calm and revolts aga
inst them.
On the other hand, Govind Rane (Anurag Kashyap), is a corrupt ACP who is a chain
smoker and a pervert. He rules the hidden rotten system with his three disciple
s. Incidentally, these four police officers come across an accident on their dut
y which changes their lives forever. Akira and Govind are dealing with their own
mess but what leads them two to cross paths is the entire mystery. Rabiya Sulta
n (Konkona Sen Sharma), SP, Crime Branch, is appointed to solve that mystery. Th
is is what director A R Murgadoss has narrated in his 2 hours 20 minutes thrille
r.
Known for making content driven films like 'Ghajini' and 'Holiday', 'Akira' is s
urely an addition to the midas touch of A R Murgadoss. He worked really hard on
the screenplay of the film along with Santha Kumar which is applaudable. He make
s sure that the film doesn t bore the audience at any single point. Story by Santh
a Kumar is engaging that makes Akira an out and out edge-of-the-seat thriller. T
he best part of the film is that it is probably one of the few films that isn t bo
und to a male protagonist. One must say, films like 'Kahaani' and 'Queen' have o
pened doors for female centric films in Bollywood. Though the movie is a Hindi r
emake of a Tamil flick 'Mouna Guru', 'Akira' stands out in several aspects.
Sonakshi Sinha, who is knight in shining armour of the film, has truly arrived!
It is so good to see her breaking bones and kicking butts so effortlessly. Her p
ower packed performance in the film is an answer to those who don t consider her a
s a good actor. She debuted with 'Dabangg' and went on to do entertainers like '
Rowdy Rathore', 'R Rajkumar' and many more such films where she was used as a fi
ller. It won t be wrong to call 'Akira', Sonakshi's her real debut. Anurag Kashyap
just steals the show with his intense and flawless performance as a corrupt ACP
. Konkona Sen Sharma has a small yet striking role of an investigative officer.
The rest of the cast, which includes Amit Sadh, Atul Kulkarni and Smita Jaykar d
oes a fair job.
Although the music is composed by Vishal-Shekhar, no songs are featured in the m
ovie. For me, a no song film is always a preference. 'Akira' doesn t have scope fo
r any music because of its intriguing plot which keeps the viewer completely hoo
ked. R. D. Rajasekhar has beautifully captured Mumbai throughout the film. The
film is pacy, all thanks to the narrative but A Sreekar Prasad, which should be
applauded for his crisp editing skills.
The film will surely remind you of Aamir Khan s Ghajini but thanks to Akira s grippi

ng plot which is so absorbing that one doesn t have enough time to ponder upon the
comparison. There are few scenes that look unreal; the one where a fellow mate
helps Sonakshi to escape from the mental asylum, which is slightly dreamlike. Ak
ira is a great effort by director A R Murgadoss. Watch it for its layered myster
y and Sonakshi Sinha s finest performance by far!