A Fine Effort - Worth A Watch. Review on Holiday

Many films have been made on terrorism but this time we get to know the role of sleeper cells. May be not many are aware that there exist something called'Sleeper Cells'. Who or what are they? How do they operate? Writer - director A. R. Murugadoss has done some research on the sleeper cells, their modus operandi and have come out with a movie that is clearly a winner as it succeeds big time in entertaining the viewers.

The movie has been made in Tamil starring Vijay and the Hindi version is frame to frame remake of the Tamil version.

In 'Holiday - A Soldier is Never Off Duty' Akshay Kumar plays Virat Bakshi who is on holiday and while traveling in a bus with his friend(Sumeet Raghvan) comes across a case of pick pocket. They stop the bus and starts checking every passenger. The culprit is caught but another passenger starts running away. Akshay chases him & when asked why he ran when he wasn't the culprit, a big explosion takes place in that bus killing many. The man turned out to be a terrorist & while trying to escape Akshay catches him & begins his secret ruthless interrogation & investigation. It is revealed from him that they are going to attack 12 different locations in Mumbai.

With a well written sequence Akshay with the help of other 11 army officers not only locates  all the 12 sleeper cell operators one by once but also kills them ruthlessly. This brings out the main leader in open who wants to settle score with people who killed his 12 men. Begins the cat and mouse game where both try to outsmart each other, which leads to the nail biting final 30 minutes of the film.

The story has few twists that keep the interest of the viewers alive. Like how did the terrorist manage to escape from the hospital? The kidnapping of 5 girls by terrorists, where Akshay spins a yarn. The way Akshay got trapped. These are few of the sequences that adds to the value of the film.

The background music is superb & build interest as scenes progresses in the story. But the music of the film is just above average though the final song, which is a tribute to the Indian Army goes unnoticed. The dialogues are good. Photography is fantastic.

Sumeet Raghvan does a good job. Sonakshi SInha plays her part comfortably. Side artists playing the role of army personnel, are okay. Govinda in a small role make his presence felt & brings smile to viewers' face amidst tensed situations.

Farhad Daruwala makes a confident debut in the villainous role. He has good physique, nice toned body to play the negative character and he is here to stay in Bollywood.

The movie actually belongs to two people. Actor Akshay Kumar and writer-director A. R. Murugadoss. The movie required an actor who can play the role of defence intelligence officer with panache and Akshay Kumar was an apt choice. He got into the skin of the character to fight the sleeper cells, performed the stunts with controlled aggression. He looked ruthless when required & dangerous when demanded. Full marks to him. Well done Akshay Kumar.

Director is the captain of the ship and A. R. Murugadoss is in full form. His story writing shows that he has done reasonable research on sleeper cells and then choosing the Indian Army to fight the terrorists was a novel idea, which succeeds. And the climax when all the army personnel are returning to their duty is sure to make some moist eyes in the theatre. A woman sitting behind us was sobbing.

Best part is that this movie can be watched with family. Go for it.

Thanks A. R. Murugadoss and Akshay Kumar for giving us this entertainer. Please do it again - we are waiting:)