Ruslaan is like a masterclass in how not to make a movie in 2024. Aayush Sharma tries to flex his "mass hero" muscles again, but instead of delivering something entertaining, we're gifted with a mess that feels like it time-traveled from a 90s reject bin. Honestly, the filmmakers seem blissfully unaware that Indian cinema has moved on. They've also hilariously attempted to push the absurd narrative that all Muslim officers are shining examples of patriotism, while the Hindu cop? Yep, you guessed it-he's a traitor. Bold storytelling or just lazy stereotyping?
The film's plot is a worn-out cliché: a terrorist's son proving his loyalty to the country. Groundbreaking stuff, right? Wrong. If they thought the twist in the climax was something new, someone should have told them it was last seen in a Saas-Bahu serial circa 2002. The action scenes are drenched in unnecessary slow motion-seriously, how many angles of Aayush walking in slo-mo do we need? By the third one, I felt like I was stuck in a loop of boredom. The filmmakers seem to think that slow motion equals tension. Spoiler: It doesn't.
Speaking of the cast, Aayush's performance is as forgettable as the plot. The "mass avatar" they've tried to push just doesn't fit. It's like putting a superhero cape on a bored office worker and expecting him to fly. Sushrii Mishraa is there for nothing more than eye candy, because, of course, a film from the 1960s rulebook mandates a bikini scene-even in 2024. Vidya Malvade is supposed to be a tough intelligence officer, but she feels more like a cardboard cutout, and Jagapathi Babu, trying his best to add a pan-India flavor, looks painfully out of place.
The editing? Abysmal. Ruslaan manages to stretch a two-hour runtime into an experience that feels three times longer. The songs are so forgettable, you might wonder if you dreamed them. But honestly, why were they even there? It's like the editor gave up halfway through and thought, "Eh, let's just leave it all in." The production design is so low-budget it feels like the crew raided a discount store five minutes before shooting. At least that would explain why the film looks so shoddy.
Director Karan Butani seems to be living in a parallel universe where outdated masala flicks are still a thing. If this was his attempt to bring that era back, he failed. Spectacularly. Ruslaan is nothing but a torturous ride into mediocrity, and for those who manage to sit through it, congratulations-you've earned a medal for endurance.
