Over the years, Vidyut Jammwal has established himself as an action hero and we have seen his flair in the genre from the very start in Force in which he shared screen space with another action hero, John Abraham. However, it’s his Commando franchise that shone the spotlight entirely on him as an action hero and earned a big fan following with the three films in the series. In Crakk: Jeetega... Toh Jiyegaa!, Jammwal pushes the envelope and has consolidated his position further in the genre that has a lot of potential in the industry. Crakk is Jammwal’s film right from scene one when he shows off his daredevil skills like train surfing, which is illegal in most railways across the world. The scene sets the tone of the film and sees the Kalaripayattu-trained star joining Maidaan, a coveted underground platform for extreme gamers from across the world who live to savour the edge-of-the-life thrill.
Coming from the able direction of Aditya Datt, the man behind Table No 21, which also had a ‘gaming element’ headlined by Rajeev Khandelwal, gives the setting of the film some novelty with an extreme sports universe that is steered by Dev, played by Arjun Rampal. In the 2023 edition of Maidaan, we see 32 players of different ethnicities engaging in multiple races, culminating in a showdown with the showrunner, for a prize money of Rs 80 crore. While most of the players are here for the hefty amount and the title, Jammwal who plays Siddharth Dixit aka Siddhu from India has another motive to be in the fateful game. He is on a mission to find out the truth behind the death of his brother Nehal, who was lured by the game and killed in a previous edition of it. But there’s more to the story than just a brother on a hunt and a game baying for blood and money. Bijay Anand, as the real showrunner of Maidaan, is also consolidating his bad-man position in the industry.
The female leads in the film — Nora Fatehi and Amy Jackson — have been assigned meaty parts but remain out of the major action space. Jackson who plays a cop in the film displays some fighting skills, thanks to her regular kickboxing regimen, but Nora who plays an influencer and the love interest of Siddhu, remains a glam factor only. We are not counting the scene in which she is paired with Siddhu as it involved just gliding on the skates and maneuvering the way to reach the goal while being chased by starving dogs. Jamie Lever, who plays a bookie and also an aide to Jammwal, does her part well.
The music, especially rapping, lends an edge to the film like its action, from the very beginning. Vikram Montrose’s scores and Paradox and Shekhar Astitwa’s lyrics add a groovy beat to the film and the title track complementing the adrenaline rush of the action sequences. Rom rom with MC Square and Tanishk Bagchi which has Tollywood star Rukmini Maitra’s cameo, is a bonus. Another track that adds some soft as well as emotional edges to the musicscape is Khayal rakhna composed by Mithoon and written by Manoj Muntashir.
The main hero of the film is the action and though Jammwal singlehandedly shoulders the responsibility of showcasing a high level of stunts, as an actor and producer of the film, it still falls short of leaving the action film enthusiast feeling fulfilled. There are many scenes that will make one go wow, especially Jammwal’s aerial stunts with bicycle and his gravity-defying moves that are showcased with dexterity by the able cinematographer Mark Hamilton, but as an audience who is exposed to global content on OTT platforms, the wow factor falls short of expectations. Rampal’s action sequences are very few. However, what impressed us about Crakk is that it is a rare action film in Bollywood which is sans mindless mass murders and blazing guns.
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