Dhokha Round D Corner review: R Madhavan, Aparshakti Khurana starrer thriller is a Dhokha indeed

Dhokha Round D Corner movie review

Cast: R Madhavan, Aparshakti Khurana, Khushalii Kumar, Darshan Kumaar, and others

Director: Kookie Gulati

Duration: 1 hour 51 minutes

Where to watch: Theaters

Rating: 2/5 stars

A housewife with delusional disorder, a husband accused of cheating, a police officer, and a terrorist get embroiled in a tense hostage situation - the idea sounds great on paper but fails miserably at the execution level in Kookie Gulati's latest suspense thriller Dhokha Round D Corner.

The film takes off from the word go showing the troubled marriage life between Yatharth Sinha, played by R Madhavan, and Sanchi Sinha, essayed by Khushalii Kumar who is seen making her Bollywood debut. Enters Aparshakti Khurana as Haq Gul, a terrorist who takes Sanchi hostage while she's alone at their home asking for his demands to be fulfilled. ACP Malik, Darshan Kumaar as a no-nonsense cop, takes over the entire Spring Sunshine apartment complex with his armed police force to catch Gul.

Making excellent use of the Rashomon effect, Dhokha Round D Corner shows two contradictory descriptions of how multiple events unfold in the story. The director succeeds in maintaining ample curiosity among the audience on whom they can trust among the four lead characters. However, in doing so, the film loses its own perspective.

Marred with illogical plot points and weak writing, the thriller fails to generate any interest or sympathy for Yatharth and Sanchi, ACP Malik or terrorist Gul. The multiple twists and turns don't occur organically and seem force-fitted into the story for shock value.

However, what works for the film is that the writer and director Kookie Gulati, who has earlier helmed films like Vivek Oberoi starrer Prince and Abhishek Bachchan's The Big Bull, doesn't waste any time in building up the plot and takes the audience right into the dramatic hostage situation within the first ten minutes. The short runtime of less than two hours is well-suited for this hostage thriller.

Darshan Kumaar and Aparshakti Khurana try their best to salvage Dhokha with their sincere and persistent performances, especially the latter who has worked hard on his character's Kashmiri dialect, but when the writing is weak, how much can the actors carry the burden of the film on their shoulders! Khushalii Kumar adds the glamour factor in the film as an ideal femme fatale. It's surprising though that R Madhavan, who was exceptional in his last outing Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, is so ordinary here that it appears that the actor sleepwalked throughout the entire film.

Dhokha Round D Corner ends with a heartbreak song titled Mahi Mera Dil and within seconds, the tone of the film changes with the remake of the retro dance track Mere Dil Gaaye Ja (Zooby Zooby), leaving the audience wondering what to make of this film or simply accept that it was a 'Dhokha' indeed.