Cast: Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Ronit Roy, Sonakshi Sinha, Manushi Chillar, Alaya F, Prithviraj Sukumaran, and others

Director: Ali Abbas Zafar

Stars: ⭐

***

Let me give you five words that will summarise the entire film – Indian Army, Court Martial, India-Pakistan, Revenge, Victory. Yes, that’s the plot of Bade Miyan Chote Miyan with an introduction to AI – Cause why not – that’s what everyone is talking about. As I started writing this review, I wondered why I even watched the film. The 2 hours 38 minutes long film is nothing but predictable. The director Ali Abbas Zafar and the writers have tried their best to add comedy to a film that should have been serious. Did it work? Well, not for me.

Spoiler Alert!!!

Let me begin by mentioning what worked for me in the film since it won’t take much time – Ronit Roy’s performance is something that stood out for me. He played Colonel Adil Shekhar Azad in Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. He can get into the skin of the characters he portrays. The lead antagonist Kabir, played by Prithviraj Sukumaran deserves a special mention. He tried his best to make the badly written character look relatable and real. The title track will make you groove – Why not – We’ve loved the original one. And that’s it.

The film opens with an introduction of a ‘Yantra’ (A package) that can save India from any attacks by Pakistan or China – only to know that this object in question is none other than Sonakshi Sinha. You read that right! The initial 20 minutes are dedicated to establishing why Firoz (Akshay Kumar) and Rakesh (Tiger Shroff) are called Bade Miyan and Chote Miyan.

At one point in the film, you will feel as if you are watching low-budget Wakanda. I understand, that taking inspiration is fine but not doing justice to it can’t be accepted. The makers have used AI as the core of the film. Half the film is a flashback trying to show what led to things that are happening.

The dialogues are cliché – Terrorism Mein Bhi Nepotism, PubG nahi Fauji Khelo… etc. The addition of comic elements and dialogues was not necessary at all. Honestly, if I hear one more “buddy cop” banter that feels like it’s been plucked straight out of a bargain bin of 80s action film, I might just lose my mind. The exchanges between Akshay and Tiger were predictable, lacking any semblance of originality or wit. It’s as if the writers took a checklist of every Army movie cliché and ticked them off one by one.

And don’t even get me started on the plot. From the moment the opening credits rolled, I could predict every twist and turn with painful accuracy. The story is so formulaic that it’s practically on autopilot, dragging the audience through a series of tired tropes and predictable scenarios. There’s nothing fresh or innovative here – just a regurgitation of plot points we’ve seen a hundred times before.

To make matters worse, the film’s runtime feels like an eternity. Scenes are stretched to the breaking point, with unnecessary filler padding out an already thin plot. It’s as if the filmmakers were trying to compensate for the lack of substance with sheer volume, resulting in a bloated, tedious slog of a movie.

Verdict

Bade Miyan Chote Miyan is a prime example of everything that’s wrong with Bollywood cinema – lazy writing, recycled plots, and a complete lack of originality. Save yourself the agony and give this one a hard pass.