Review of Raazi (2018) by Maddie_1003 — 18 May 2018

Engaging and heartfelt.

I saw Raazi, just few days after it came out, and I didn't regret it. This is a story which is enthralling, engaging and heartfelt at the same time. Alia Bhatt stars as Sehmat Khan, the shy, sensitive daughter of an ailing businessman Hidayat Khan(Rajit Kapoor). On hearing about the imminent war looming over India and its lasting effects during 1971, he decides to train his daughter as a spy and send her to Pakistan by marrying her off to his longtime friend Parvez Syed's(Shishir Kumar) younger son, Iqbal(Vicky Kaushal) . Her task would be to gain the innermost information about the war. It is indeed endearing to watch Sehmat transform form a sensitive college student to a bold, fearless and a trusted spy. Based on a novel, "Calling Sehmat" written by Harinder Sikka, which is based on a true story, the direction given by Meghna Gulzar is tight and engaging, and manages to keep you, if not on the edge of the seat, but intrigued, nevertheless. A stellar performance given by the supporting cast, Jaideep Alhawat(Khaled Mir), Arif Zakaria(Abdul),Vicky Kaushal(Iqbal Syed), Shishir Sharma(Parvez Syed), Amruta Khanvilkar(Munir) make up for am exciting yet heartfelt period thriller. The songs do not incessantly bring out the patriotism in every scene, but it is subtle, and will stay with you for long. It is a story dedicated to those unsung heroes whose names are never written in history.