Super 30 Review: The 3 Hour Long Hrithik Roshan Film Is Interesting Enough To Keep You Hooked

When we talk of Super 30, let’s be real, we are not expecting something huge. There is going to be no action, no dance and song sequence breaking just in between and this is a zone that Hrithik is not best known for! Yes, this has to be one of the most challenging roles for Hrithik Roshan because he has no comfort zone to fall back on. Inspired by the life of Anand Kumar, it is about an ordinary man who has dared to achieve something extraordinary.

So here, Roshan had to actually put a lot of effort. Within the first 5-10  minutes, you’ll probably get used to (or not) his weird tan and his accent, but you’ll have to trust me on this that this is not going to come in between your experience in the theatre, because this is one of the best Hrithik Roshan films that you would see in a long time.

The film is not just about great acting from Hrithik himself, it is a mixture of a lot of things done right. The script has a flow, the performances are beyond great, the background music is perfect and it has the right dosage of emotion and drama. When I checked the runtime, I dreaded that 2 hour 47 min would be tad-bit long, but thankfully and fortunately it wasn’t. It rather turned out to be something that every cinema goer would love, with a perfect balance.

Yes, that is not to say that the film steers clear of dramatization or doesn’t go a bit overboard at times. The climax scene, for instance, was a little far-fetched, if you may say, but overall, it does fit well into the narrative. The key here is probably balance and whenever you think this one is going off it, the film quickly regains it back, making the entire cinematic experience enjoyable.

Vikas Bahl has been given credit for the direction after he got a clean chit from the sexual harassment allegations. This can be called somewhat his redemption after Queen . With Super 30, he did prove that he can direct and direct well, if he has the vision clear.

Coming to performances, the film belongs to Hrithik, but Hrithik isn’t the best performer here. Sure, the way he expresses his emotions will prove that he is still one of the seasoned actors we have in the country who can do far well that perfect the action and dance sequences. He plays Anand Kumar with earnestness, putting his 100 percent into it and that translates on screen. But with him, he has an army of actors to constantly raise the bar. Take Pankaj Tripathi for example. The man is a sheer genius and once again he has proved that whatever character might be thrown to him, he will make it his own and perfect it to the core. The only times that I was reminded of Hrithik’s flawed accent was when Pankaj Tripathi spoke. Being from Bihar’s Gopalganj, all he has to do is speak mother tongue and it is there that you are reminded of the misses that Roshan made!

The film also marked the debut of Nandish Sandhu (credited as Nandish Singh) and it is a good debut indeed. He plays Hrithik’s brother in the film. Another TV import, Mrunal Thakur , does not get too much screen time, but she shines in every frame she is given. Aditya Srivastava, who rose to fame with C.I.D, also has a significant role in the film and he keeps the bar up. But the best part of the film were the children. They do lack at times, for example Urmila’s way too flawless English in the Basanti No Dance song, but these kids shine bright. There is also Vijay Verma and boy, he is love!

If you talk about the film, you have to talk about the chemistry shown between Anand’s parents. It is after a long time that we saw such heart-warmingly real relationship portrayed on-screen. Also, the background score and music deserve all the love for making the film what it is.  Ajay-Atul, as usual, does a job that is beyond perfect. This film has no songs, they are situational and weaves into the narrative.

Everything aside, there is just one part that I would like to mention here. There was a press con in the film, where a journalist raises a question. Aditya Srivastava’s character asks him not to raise his voice because he has had “chai-nasta”. Well, we are pretty sure that the makers had not gauged but look at the co-incidence. You can’t help but laugh how well that fit with a recent event involving Kangana Ranaut . Well… we can only laugh at the uncanny similarity to the real situation.

The film made me realize my priviledge that I had, for so long, been taking for granted, This is a film of grit, determination and of struggle, but even with a close to 3 hours run-time, it never turns boring. Watch this film, it is honestly time we get over Kabir Singh !