Samrat Prithviraj Movie Review: Akshay Kumar starrer is a befitting ode to the valor of Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan despite the flaws

Chandra Prakash Dwivedi's Samrat Prithviraj is a story that has been told numerous times in the form of TV shows, comic books, poems, and novels. With Akshay Kumar holding the reins, there was a lot of banking on the project which showcases the courage and bravery of Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan. However, the movie manages to deliver its message loud and clear, emerging as a befitting tribute to the mighty warrior despite some minor flaws.

The plot revolves around Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan (Akshay Kumar) locking horns with Mohammed Ghori of Ghazni (Manav Vij) in the Battle Of Tarain after the latter eyes Delhi for himself. The sub-plots focus on Chauhan’s relationship with his doting wife Sanyogita ( Manushi Chhillar ) and his loyal aides Chand Vardai ( Sonu Sood ) and Kaka Kanha ( Sanjay Dutt ). From his journey as a loving husband, powerful king, fierce warrior, and ultimately ferocious terror to his enemies, the movie focuses on the different facets of the king’s life.

The direction by Chandra Prakash Dwivedi highlights the bravery and morals of Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan in some of the scenes skilfully. The king’s righteous principles and magnificence when facing an enemy or treating his wife are showcased intricately in the film. The gladiator-inspired final combat of a blinded Prithviraj with some vicious lions and finally with Ghori himself is executed seamlessly despite some fictionalized and dramatic portions. The dialogues of the movie are preachy in some portions but some of them win big, especially the ones involving the camaraderie between Chand Vardai and Kaka Kanha.

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However, the part where the movie falters is the lack of a magnanimous impact on some scenes which holds great prominence in Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan’s life. This includes him sparing Mohammed Ghori of Gazni’s life once and carrying away Sanyogita from her Swayamvar. The scenes do not exude that spark and power which could have enhanced them as a significant sub-plot. Instead, they just heavily rely on some dramatic and preachy dialogue-baazi and jarring background scores. The movie also makes the sub-plot of woman empowerment very monotonous and dogmatic. It is understandable that the makers wanted to put forth the message of equality and the rightful treatment of women through Sanyogita’s position as Chauhan’s queen but somehow the scenes looked repetitive and went overboard with the message. Somehow due to the focus on these admonitory scenes a tad bit too much, Samrat Prithviraj fails to bring through the aspects which would have more prominently defined Chauhan’s fervor as a king to his loyal subjects.

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Talking about the performances, Akshay Kumar though hits the right chord in the climax and some of the battle sequences lack that magnanimity that is required for a role of such a grand scale. There is a sense of one-note in his performance in some of the prominent scenes which only shows that there was no additional effort from the actor’s side to bring in an extra truckload of passion to the character. Manushi Chhillar on the other hand is surprisingly impressive. For her debut venture, the actress delivers a power-packed performance and looks charming, watch out for the fiery Jauhar sequence where she absolutely aced it.

Sanjay Dutt is absolutely a treat to watch as Kaka Kanha. Some of his scenes and dialogues form one of the most endearing moments of the film. Manav Vij tries to do justice in his role as the antagonist but somehow his performance lacks the fire and depth which is required to bring out the viciousness of such a character. Sonu Sood delivers an intense act as Chand Vardai after such a long time which is refreshing to behold. Ashutosh Rana , Sakshi Tanwar , and Manoj Joshi are satisfying to watch in their brief roles.

The action sequences especially the climax has been masterfully choreographed with the VFX looking realistic. The cinematography by Manush Nandan is top-notch in some parts but there is an excessive color palette of orange and yellow in the majority of the portions in the movie. The music by Shankar Ehsaan Loy is rather underwhelming for a period drama of this magnitude with only the song ‘Hari Hara’ hitting the right chord. However, even with its flaws, Samrat Prithviraj sends home the right message that was to bring alive the bravery and courage of Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan on celluloid.