‘Sikandar’ Movie Review: A Bored Salman Khan Sleepwalks Through AR Murugadoss’ Most Lifeless Film Yet (LatestLY Exclusive)
Sikandar Movie Review: (Kisi Ka) Bhai keeps making movies that are losing their jaan more and more with each release. This time, it’s the turn of Sikandar, Salman Khan’s first (and possibly only) collaboration with AR Murugadoss – a film packed with every Salman Khan movie element – action, drama, age-gap disregarding romance, dialoguebaazi, a supporting cast mostly filled with nearly out-of-work actors, and, of course, Bhai’s bracelet. And yet, what it truly lacks is spunk. A life. A soul. A reason for existence. Sikandar makes you rethink your life’s priorities. Like, why are you watching this film on a Sunday morning when even Salman Khan seems disinterested in being here? ‘Sikandar’: From ‘Love’ to ‘Dabangg 3’, 10 Movies Where Salman Khan Worked With South Directors and How Those Fared at Box Office.
Salman Khan plays Sanjay Rajkot, a royal from – well, you guessed it – Rajkot, because the makers couldn’t be bothered to come up with a more original title. He is so benevolent and generous that the people of the town decide – democracy be damned – they want him to rule over them. The only thing he cannot spare is time for his wife, SaiSri (Rashmika Mandanna), to see her painting or to hear her share the news that she is pregnant. Never mind, though; he can still arrange the most extravagant drone show for their anniversary, so all is forgiven.
Watch The Trailer of ‘Sikandar’:
If you think their age gap is glaringly obvious, at least SaiSri acknowledges it, explaining that he married her despite it to save her from a humiliating incident. What incident, and why was marriage the only solution? The movie has no time for such explanations. Most of its runtime is occupied by Salman Khan delivering every line with such lethargy that I feared he was having a stroke. Even actors like Sharman Joshi had to slow down their dialogue delivery to match his (lack of) pace. Not Rashmika Mandanna, though – her stilted delivery seems more an attempt to suppress her Kannada twang. If that is not enough, she also has Iulia Vantur sing “Abhi Na Jao Chod Kar” for her and when Salman Khan makes her stop singing, I believe he did it to save our ears. Thanks bhai!
A Still From Sikandar
Okay, back to the plot. A tragedy strikes in Sanjay’s life, forcing him to move to Mumbai, where he takes three people under his wing – an orphaned kid in Dharavi, a married Brahmin woman (Kajal Aggarwal), and a jilted girl (Anjini Dhawan). He also earns the wrath of a powerful politician, Pradhan (Sathyaraj), and now he must protect these three lives from Pradhan’s vengeance.
‘Sikandar’ Movie Review – Lackadaiscal Writing
As for why the film is called Sikandar, Sanjay explains this to his wife while they are driving (no driving jokes here, I assure you). It’s some hokum about how his history-loving grandmother was a fan of Alexander the Great. He then explains why he is called Sanjay and why he is also known as Raja Saab (as if the last one wasn’t obvious). All this is fine and good, but I have one question – why is SaiSri asking why her husband was named so after a year of marriage? Is this the most forced exposition ever?
A Still From Sikandar
I’m not sure if Sikandar is a remake; it certainly isn’t one of Murugadoss’s own Tamil hit Sarkar, as some reports have claimed. That doesn’t make it any better, though. There is nothing novel about this film – remake or not.
Sikandar hinges on an emotional love story driving its masala elements – a tragedy that sets the hero on a bigger mission, becoming the guardian angel of three lives. What’s with this rule of three, Bhai? Even Jai Ho had the same ridiculous formula. If you think about it, Sikandar feels more like a spiritual successor to Jai Ho, and that’s not a comforting thought. Be ready for more Bhai sermonising here!
A Still From Sikandar
For the film’s emotional core to work, we need to be invested in the love story. For that, there needs to be chemistry between the lead couple. For that, the dramatic rift in the romance needs to be convincing. You see where I’m going with this?
The writing in these portions lacks logic, relying on contrivances because the makers had no idea how to move the plot forward. A character is grievously injured but doesn’t tell the people near them. Why? No one knows. More importantly, no one (in the creative team) cares.
A Still From Sikandar
The love story is so lifeless that I thought Mumbai and its pollution might inject some energy into the film. Instead, Sikandar sinks deeper into a tedious abyss, with no intention of climbing out. The screenplay throws its hands up in despair, and so does Murugadoss’ direction. Every problem is resolved by Sanjay conveniently flashing black money. If that doesn’t work, then Sanjay gives life-lessons in his drone voice that instantly work their charm. If that fails, he throws some lazy punches all around- the action choreography at least deserves credit for attempting to do something interesting Salman Khan’s listless body language. Even Santhosh Narayanan’s background score does little to elevate these sequences; only the title track adds a hint of flair.
A Still From Sikandar
Aside from Sikandar strutting around like a deity, every secondary character is either irritatingly dumb, poorly written, or both. Mostly both. The villain barely registers, as the movie keeps forgetting about him until it needs another action scene and he has to send either cops or goons after the hero. The dialogues feel flat throughout – perhaps also due to lacklustre delivery. Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan Movie Review: Salman Khan and Pooja Hegde’s Action-Entertainer Impresses at Being an Utter Slog-Fest!
‘Sikandar’ Movie Review – Nothing Works, Actually
Even the editing is nonexistent, as if no one cared about making a decent film. Scenes cut to each other without any transition. A gym fight scene is suddenly intercut with Sanjay driving back to Dharavi. In the climax, Sanjay is told the police have arrived at the hospital to arrest him; in the next scene, he’s driving to meet the minister. How? The makers don’t care to explain, and I was too exhausted to wonder. The only positive thing I can say is that they attempted to make the film look colourful, so it will at least appear visually appealing when it inevitably lands on an OTT platform.
A Still From Sikandar
As for the performances (ha ha ha), Salman Khan delivers one of his dullest to date—and that’s saying something, considering I can’t recall the last time he acted with enthusiasm. His dialogue delivery is lifeless, and he is stiff even in the action sequences. Sorry, Bhai, but when the film made him cry in emotional scenes, I struggled to suppress a chuckle. What a challenge.
A Still From Sikandar
The supporting cast is almost entirely wasted. Kajal Aggarwal, Sharman Joshi, Anjini Dhawan (decent in Binny and Family but grating in that one outburst scene here), and Sanjay Kapoor merely exist. Prateik Babbar’s character gets one of the most random death scenes in recent memory. Sathyaraj tries to inject menace into an underwritten role that lacks any real impact.
In the end, I feel bad for the doctor who reveals details of the three organ donors to Sanjay after making him swear on his wife. By the time the film wraps up, the entire world seems to know about them. I just hope the poor man still has his job – because Sanjay and everyone around him clearly can’t keep their mouths shut.
‘Sikandar’ Movie Review – Final Thoughts
If your lead actor looks bored and disinterested, what else can you expect the audience to be? I haven’t seen all of AR Murugadoss’ films, but I have seen some of his weaker ones, like 7 Aum Arivu and Darbar, and Sikandar somehow makes them look better by comparison just by existing. The film continues Salman Khan’s trend of disregarding what his fans actually want – recycling everything we’ve already seen him do, only with zero enthusiasm and an utter lack of energy. There’s a line in Andaz Apna Apna where Prem (played by Salman) proudly declares, “Arre main Sikandar,” to which the late Javed Khan responds, “Woh tujhe bandar bana gaya.” At least Prem could blame Amar for that – here, Salman has only himself to blame for making everyone feel like the bandar.
(The opinions expressed in the above article are of the author and do not reflect the stand or position of Today News 24.)
(The above story first appeared on Today News 24 on Mar 30, 2025 01:45 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website todaynews24.top).
