Agni Review: Pratik Gandhi, Divyenndu Shine In Rahul Dholakia’s Impressive Comeback Film

Last Updated:December 06, 2024, 01:41 IST

Agni Review: Agni may lack the raw depth and tragedy quotient of Parzania but Rahul Dholakia definitely does bounce back with this one.

Agni is currently streaming on Prime Video.

Agni Movie Review: Bollywood and its love affair with uniformed men is no secret. Time and again, our filmmakers have gone back to stories about deshbhakt army, air force and naval officers and cops, who selflessly have fought for and protected India with chest-thumping fervour. For many, it’s almost a sure shot formula to success. Doctors in uniform have also often made it to Bollywood storytelling. The only men and women in uniform who’ve been left behind are firefighters – maybe because for makers, as and as harsh as it sounds, their stories don’t completely fall under the realm of patriotic or cinematic zeal.

However, Rahul Dholakia more than bridges this void with the gut-wrenching, taut and earnest, Agni. Here, the director decides to not only touch upon the hardships that come with their professions but also explore the underlying red tapism and the not so smooth-sailing personal lives of these men and women, who’re dedicated to protecting their city and civilians. Agni revolves around Vitthal, the chief of Parel Fire Station. Without wasting any time, Rahul dives straight into a mishap, a deadly fire inside a popular restaurant, and how Vitthal and his team jumps into extinguishing the notorious flames.

But this time around, they notice something unusual. Unlike its yellow and orange flames, this time, the fire has a blue-ish tinge to it. As Avni spearheads the investigation, another massive fire breaks out at a garment factory. Here too, the flame has a suspicious blue colour, leading Vitthal and Avni to suspect arson. While Vitthal is a much-revered firefighter who inspires many in his field, back home, he’s tired of proving himself to his son, who’s obsessed with Samit, his ‘super cop’ maternal uncle. Unlike the righteous Vitthal, Samit doesn’t think twice before flouting rules as long as it’s working in his favour.

Through possible bribes and corruption, he’s at a financially more stable position than Vitthal and has recently bought an apartment at a plush building in Mumbai. The undercurrents between them are evident. When this series of fires catches the attention of the Chief Minister, he invites both Vitthal and Samit to his office and orders them to start a more stringent investigation. There too, much like everyone else, the CM leaves no stone unturned to belittle and deride Vitthal and his team of firefighters in front of Samit and his constables.

Who will prove to be the real hero between Vitthal and Samit? Or will they get along? Will Vitthal be able to win his son’s respect? How do firefighters navigate their thankless profession? The film explores all this and much more. Rahul spends the first half in establishing the characters, their personal stories, their professions and the huddles in it. It’s only in the second half that we get a glimpse of the crux of the story. And yet, the director makes sure to pack in a crisp and engaging screenplay in the first half that keeps you hooked.

Agni is also packed with some memorable moments. Late at night, when Vitthal enters his son’s room, he sees a photo frame bearing a picture of him and Samit. It breaks Vitthal’s heart. Mahadev, Vitthal’s peer, has some of the best scenes in the film, such as the one where he’s seen talking to the pictures of his dead parents and brother, who lost his life in the fateful 26/11 event. It’s only Avni’s track that gets a half-baked treatment. There’s no explanation as to what keeps her so strong and practical – even mechanical – when her boyfriend dies in a fire. There seems to be a missing link there as she almost appears indifferent and carries on with her life rather effortlessly, immediately after his death. This may also stem from a lack of her back story that has led her to become so clinical.

Alternatively, the cinematographer deserves a mention for capturing the middle-class and not very sanitised part of Mumbai with finesse. The actors, along with dialogues by Vijay Maurya and the cinematography, render an element of verisimilitude to the narrative. The special effects team also manages to put their best foot forward in the sequences that take place inside raging fires. Rahul builds a world that’s familiar – bit by bit – and stupendously connects it to the climax. The climax, though not completely unforeseen, quite successfully is able to push you to the edge of your seat and make you root for Vitthal against all odds.

The makers further deserve brownie points for their casting choices. More often than not, some stories deserve non-stars and it’s this aspect of Agni that makes it special. These artists, often uninhibited of vanity, shed their image and slip under the skin of their characters with a rare ease. Pratik Gandhi gives his heart and soul to Vitthal and still comes across as extremely effortless. With Agni, he strikes a hat-trick and proves his versatility once again after Madgaon Express and Do Aur Do Pyaar. As a beaten, defeated and righteous middle-class man struggling to make his family proud of him and his job, he knocks it out of the park.

Divyenndu essays Samit and plays around the greyness of his character impressively. Often, he may remind you of a toned down version of Munna Bhaiya from Mirzapur, but we aren’t complaining. In fact, Pratik and Divyenndu are so good that they overpower Saiyami Kher as Avni. With an already not very well-fleshed out character, she’s unable to rise above the screenplay and hit the right notes. Sacred Games fame Jitendra Joshi as Mahadev also leaves an impact. He perhaps has the most delicious character arc and he does complete justice to the borderline eccentric Mahadev. Sai Tamhankar, who plays Vitthal’s wife, does a good job too.

Agni deserves a watch for the simplicity of its storytelling as it proves that high-concept, experimental and larger-than-life narratives aren’t always the answer. It may lack the raw depth and tragedy quotient of Parzania but Rahul definitely does bounce back with this one. Agni also lets us in into the lives of firefighters who unfortunately aren’t considered the cream of social saviours. But most of all, Agni manages to rise higher than its ambitions because of Pratik and his admirable, enviable and mellowed brilliance. This modern-day poster boy of solemn middle-class stories is in for the long haul and Agni is just another film that bears a testament to the same!