Adding more zest to spy universe

Creating a prequel in itself is a challenge, and to make it even better than the master series, almost implausible. But trust the masters of the spy world, Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK, to do the impossible.

As the talented director duo creates a spin-off of Russo Brothers’ much-hyped ‘Citadel’, they do not try to compete with the Priyanka Chopra-starrer series. Different time zones and places ensure they escape comparisons, yet, they create a significant part of the motherboard of ‘Citadel’. And the template is a bit similar, too: two spies, a man and a woman, are on a mission.

Both spies are fiery and sparks fly in their unmistakable physical chemistry. ‘Citadel: Honey Bunny’ is very much a beast of its own making and can be watched as a standalone series. Honey Bunny, the names of the two leads, might sound a bit juvenile, especially since these are not code names. The series kickstarts in Nainital. Honey (Samantha), who apparently runs a café, is under attack, and so is her daughter. Who is after her and why? The timeline moves back and forth. Join the dots, and we are led onto a fascinating journey of deceit, betrayal, spy games and more. Action meets drama meets emotion… and yet, it never becomes an unpalatable mix or an unwarranted concoction.

The love story of Varun Dhawan as Bunny, the stunt man, and Samantha as Honey, an aspiring actress, begins when Bunny, also a secret agent named Rahi, tries to use her as a honey trap. And we are trapped, too, only as willing captives in this espionage game, where each episode throws in more clues. More characters join the party. Baba (Kay Kay Menon) is head of an agency and mentor to his army of agents, including KD (Saqib Saleem). Threads are connected all the way to Citadel too, headed by Zoonie (Simran Bagga), with sidekick Shaan (Sikander Kher). Both known and relatively unknown faces — like Shivankit Singh Parihar playing Chacko and Soham Majumdar as the techie Ludo — make a mark.

Child actor Kashvi Majmundar is no less than a casting coup. Each time she talks, wisdom spews. But children are equals in Raj and DK’s cinematic duniya. No wonder, she gets a major billing in casting credits too. With each line, each expression, Kashvi tugs at your heartstrings. Her name Nadia is a loaded allusion to Fearless Nadia of yesteryear, and in case your memory fails you, Nadia happens to be the name of Priyanka Chopra’s character in ‘Citadel’. Here, we see how she has been groomed by her mother Honey, who herself is ‘an exclusive piece.’ Move over action heroes, a new queen has been anointed. Agile and nimble, Samantha can whip up some serious kickass action and kill without flinching.

Undeniably, compared to Varun’s Bunny, there are more shades to Samantha’s Honey as she gets to masquerade as a seductress, a scientist and more. She is the moral compass in this conundrum where, as a dialogue goes, ‘Sikka palat, kissi ka sahi, kissi ka galat.’ Varun, caught between loyalty, righteousness and love, is very much at ease, charming and expressive, with dexterous action moves in his digital debut. Kay Kay never makes a false move. Writing by Sita R Menon is sharp, pungent and intelligent, and execution even cleverer. Backstories of both Honey and Bunny are filmed like vignettes of the past. Cinematography by Johan Heurlin Aidt is varied and textured, especially notable in high-on-smoke atmospherics of the action sequences. Editing by Sumeet Kotian connects two time periods seamlessly and intercuts at just the right inflection point, keeping the curiosity quotient at an all-time high. Detailing comes easy to the directors of ‘Guns & Gulaabs’, which was set in the 1990s too. Here, we oscillate between the 1990s and 2000s. Since we were miles away from a computer-savvy era even in 2000, the makers factor in this with minute attention to detail. Pagers do most of the talking, and it takes a truckload of computers to decode the data.

The world Raj and DK create is extremely fast-paced, but while action remains brisk, it does not overtake their unique storytelling, with punchlines and humour tingling alive. Play mode might mean an altogether different thing in the series, but don’t forget to press the play button to watch this highly entertaining, combustible series.

Honey and Bunny set the world and screens on fire, and ‘The Family Man’ makers end up adding more zest to their spy universe. Even when the terminator-predator joke between friends truly acquires Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ‘Terminator’-like hue in the final scene, it remains truly Indian in essence and spirit.