Black it out

Sheetal

There’s a reason certain films don’t make it to theatres and end up premiering on OTT. ‘Blackout’ falls in the same category.

Perhaps director Devang Bhavsar overestimated himself while developing his story into screenplay. The Dalal brothers, Hussain and Abbas, have tried to keep the dialogues interesting and these go beyond the script and also give some real punches, like calling lead actor Vikrant Massey a ‘one-take actor’.

Speaking of the talented actor, whom we have all hailed ever since the release of ‘12th Fail’, and Anant Vijay Joshi (also seen in ‘12th Fail’), both of whom are seen in ‘Blackout’, too, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that they have actually failed here. It’s hard for a viewer to see them in a below-average script after a better written and executed project.

Among the star cast, only Sunil Grover has a well-etched-out character of a ‘drunkard beggar who has a thing for poetry’. He has also been given an interesting backstory and, to our surprise, as the film leaves room for a sequel, Grover and Massey could be the two characters to carry it forward. For the story of a night, there are too many unnecessary characters and subplots that make you lose interest.

Driving inspiration from the Shakespearean method of employing fools as characters, here we have Thik and Thak, who are wannabe TikTok influencers and small-time thieves. Played by Karan Sudhakar Sonawane and Saurabh Dilip Ghadge, respectively, the actors manage to evoke some magic laughter moments. Actors Jisshu Sengupta and Mouni Roy seem totally wasted.

Another subplot that draws attention involves crime reporter Lenny D’Souza (Massey), specialising in sting operations, and one of his media trial victims, ex-MLA Anita Naik, played by Chhaya Kadam. Chhaya, who recently made headlines for being part of the Cannes-winning ‘All We Imagine As Light’, leaves an impact in her limited role in the film. Music by Vishal Mishra complements the plot, especially in the first 15 minutes where we get to hear two songs.

The film is not worth your time and energy and, of late, some OTT platforms have become the dumping ground of films that would otherwise tank at the box office.