Haiwaan Review {2.5/5} & Review Rating
Star Cast: Akshay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan
Director: Priyadarshan
Haiwaan Movie Review Synopsis:
HAIWAAN is the story of a blind man fighting a notorious man. Shyam (Saif Ali Khan) is a young, blind man who works as a maintenance manager in an upscale society of Mumbai. His family is based in Devgad; his sister Shraddha (Yamini Joshi) is about to get married and Shyam needs to raise money for it and also to pay off a loan. Shyam is very close to Judge Pradhan (Boman Irani), the ex-chief justice of India, a resident of the same society where Shyam works. Pradhan confides to Shyam about a guilt that he's carrying since a long time and it is associated with a man called Parshuram (Akshay Kumar). Pradhan is trying to find him but is unable to do so. Unknown to Pradhan, Parshuram has set his eyes on him and is waiting for the right opportunity to attack the former. What Parshuram doesn't realize is that a blind man will wreak havoc for him. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Haiwaan Movie Story Review:
HAIWAAN is adapted from the Malayalam film OPPAM [2016]. Priyadarshan's story has immense potential. However, Priyadarshan, Abilash Nair and Rohan Shankar's screenplay is weak, stretched and disjointed. Rohan Shankar's dialogues are fine. Some funny one-liners are in trademark Priyadarshan style but don’t have the same impact as his previous films.
Priyadarshan's direction has its moments. To give credit where it’s due, a few scenes are interesting, especially the ones involving Shyam and Parshuram. Whenever the two face off, the interest levels automatically go up. A massy scene involving Shyam at the police station is clapworthy, though it comes too late in the day. The phone booth sequence also takes one by surprise. The work of the technical team is first-rate and helps enhance the tension in several scenes.
On the flipside, the first half is disjointed and it takes a while to understand how the various characters are connected. The numerous songs further make the proceedings tedious. A few aspects are also never properly explained. Shyam is a maintenance manager employed by the society, yet he frequently takes leave to accompany Judge Pradhan to the hills and even to meet Nandini (Pahal Ashok Choudhary). It is also bewildering how Parshuram managed to amass so much wealth. Another major issue is that the film has too many subplots, and most of them are not tied up satisfactorily. The culmination of the Devgad track is abrupt, while the female characters don't get their proper due towards the end. The climax fight is meant to be nail-biting but ends up being unintentionally funny.
Haiwaan Movie Review Performances:
Akshay Kumar gets his act right, and the way he lets his silence do the talking is impressive. However, his dialogue delivery is a bit over-the-top. Moreover, his screen time is limited, especially in the first half. Saif Ali Khan has the maximum screen time and delivers an effective performance. His portrayal of a visually impaired man is convincing, and he also impresses in the action scenes where he takes on the baddies. Boman Irani is dependable as always. Saiyami Kher (Inspector Varsha) is decent, though her role seems too similar to JAAT [2025]. Shriya Pilgaonkar (Naina) is fair but is let down by the writing. The same goes for Sharib Hashmi (Senior Inspector Ashok Shinde), while a few of his jokes fail to land. Late Asrani (Security Guard Hussein) is adorable. Rajesh Sharma (SP Rohit Vardhan) is okay, while Pahal Ashok Choudhary is cute. Yamini Joshi, Manoj Joshi (Pandurang) and Suchitra Pillai (Catherine D'Souza; Principal) are good in small roles.
Haiwaan movie music and other technical aspects:
Pritam's music is forgettable. 'Rangiyara', 'Mere Hero Hai Woh' and the marriage song don’t work as intended. Ronnie Raphael's background score enhances the tension.
Divakar Mani's cinematography is superior and the silhouette shots especially stand out. Stunt Silva and Ravi Thyagarajan's action is realistic. Sabu Cyril's production design is superior, and Komal Shahani Mohan & V Sai Babu's costumes are convincing. Aiyappan Nair M S's editing is weak; the film should have been shorter by 30 minutes.
Haiwaan Movie Review Conclusion:
On the whole, HAIWAAN rests on Saif Ali Khan and Akshay Kumar’s performances, a few engaging face-offs and strong technical values. However, the disjointed screenplay, excessive subplots, weak songs and an underwhelming climax limit its impact. With the hype around the film also being quite low, its box-office prospects appear dim.