This Rosshan Andrrews directorial is inspired from the director’s own Mumbai Police but with a different touch. 'Deva' often plays to the gallery celebrating the rakish ways of its titular character; thankfully though the movie also critiques the inner workings of the police system
A still from the film 'Deva'. (x)
Right since the first teaser of Deva, there has been a lot of speculation on it being a remake of Rosshan Andrrews’s own Mumbai Police (2013).
Shahid and the rest of the team have reiterated that Deva isn’t Mumbai Police but after seeing the film it’s clear that Roshaan Andrrews has taken inspiration from his own movie.
Thankfully though, Deva has its own unique flavour, unlike the Kalees-directed Baby John, which had plenty of South drama.
For those who haven’t seen Mumbai Police, Deva focuses on inspector Dev Ambre (Shahid Kapoor). He is very arrogant along with being hot-headed.
Dev Ambre has zero tolerance for rules while carrying out his police duties within the boundaries of what he considers right. At the same time, he is seen sharing a solid brotherhood with ACP Rohan D’ Silva ( an impactful Pavail Gulati).
Pravesh Rana plays a senior officer and the boss of Dev called Farhan. Farhan often gets angry with Dev’s ways of doing his duty but still stands with him.
Pooja Hegde plays a crime journalist called Diya, she is the daughter of a constable. Dev and Diya eventually fall in love but Dev’s life takes a very dramatic turn when Rohan is shot by a mysterious killer while he is being felicitated.
This is the story in brief.
The beginning portions of Deva are mostly a series of sequences celebrating his machismo. Shades of Shahid Kapoor’s blockbuster and very polarizing Kabir Singh can be found in numerous instances.
But the movie picks up pace after the tragic death of Rohan. There are constant twists and turns with intricate subplots.
The interval bang showcasing the serious accident of Dev, resulting in a memory loss is a major high point as the viewers, particularly those who haven’t seen Mumbai Police would be tensed about the killer’s identity.
In the second half, the viewers see Shahid’s persona changing as Dev grapples with what he was once while handling an important task at hand.
There is a distinct mellowness in the way he goes about things, but at the same time, there is a quiet determination too. This has come out brilliantly in both the writing done by many like Abbas Dalal and Hussain Dalal, coupled with Shahid Kapoor’s acting performance.
Mention must also be made of the dialogues where the court criticizes Deva’s hooligan ways strictly warning him that police are not meant to behave like rowdies terrorising people.
A major problem with Deva is its women characters and a haphazard love story. Pooja Hegde as Divya looks gorgeous as always playing the honest crime journalist competently but the way her track has been integrated leaves a lot to be desired.
Kubbra Sait as a women cop doesn’t add much to the proceedings either. The character of Kubbra Sait could have added a different dimension given that we mostly see men as police officers. But she becomes more of an add-on, not serving much purpose.
There is an important plot twist in the pre-climax. Many details of which cannot be revealed here but this portion gives an emotional subtext into the hyper-aggressive nature of Deva in the first half.
Shahid Kapoor in ‘Deva’. (x)
Shahid brings in a raw intensity brilliantly capturing the emotional turmoil of a man carrying the burden of his father’s criminal past.
The revelation of who is the killer and the motivations behind it will definitely shock the viewers. The brotherhood between Pavail Gulati and Shahid Kapoor has also come out well.
Pavail Gulati brings in an emotional depth proving to be the perfect anthesis to Shahid’s Deva. Pravesh Rana also lends solid support as the senior inspector; he brings both authority and warmth to the part.
The use of Mumbai’s rustic surroundings brings in an extra layer. The city with its many layers becomes a character in itself, the cinematography of Amith Ray is simply brilliant.
A particular mention must also be made of how he captures the action sequences designed by Parvaz Sheikh and Abbas Ali Moghul among others.
The songs don’t make much of an impression except for “Bhasad Macha”, the combination of Shahid Kapoor’s electric dance moves along with the raw energy packs in a major punch. However, Jakes Bejoy’s background score is of the highest order elevating the intense scenes.
To sum it up Deva thankfully doesn’t completely glorify the cops, something which we have seen a lot in mainstream cinema. At the same time, a much better first half would make this investigative drama a more wholesome experience.
(Views expressed here are personal.)
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