By Rajesh Ahuja

New Delhi, Feb 17 (UNI) It is an issue that not many Bollywood films in the past have dealt with in detail though films like the Amitabh Bachchan starrer 'Hum', Rakeysh Mehra's 'Rang De Basanti' and, more recently, The Akshay

Kumar srarrer 'Rustom' did made fleeting references to it.

In this sense, Neeraj pandey's 'Aiyaary' is perhaps the first film that delves in detail into the issue of corruption in Defence forces.

In this sense, 'Aiyaary ' is India's first full flown espionage thriller.

In attempting the film, Neeraj pandey, who has given us thrillers like 'A Wednesday ' and 'Baby' weaved around the issue of terrorism, and 'Special 26', a thriller based on fake CBI officers, has charted a hitherto unexplored territory. After watching the film, it can be said that he has succeded to a large extent.

' Aiyaary' is the story about Major Jai Bakshi (Sidharth Malhotra), an armyman going rogue after being disillusioned with the corruption within the armed forces.

The relationship between Jai and his mentor Colonel Abhay Singh (Manoj Bajpayee) turns sour when the former gets disillusioned after realising the extent of corruption in the country’s defence deals and the involvement of highly placed officials in it.

After Jai turns rogue a war is triggered between the master and the protege. The film sees Jai’s mentor Colonel Abhay Singh on a mission of finding why his bright apprentice has taken the wrong way out.

With 'Aiyaary ', Neeraj pandey whose earlier films A Wednesday ' and 'Baby' we're based on the issue of terrorism, attempts to change track in trying his hand at an espionage thriller. For a large part, he succeeds.

Though, the film does not delve into too many details on the alleged nexus among the top army officials, politicians, lobbyists and arms dealers , it carries many sequences

hinting at a corruption in the system. The web of lies and deceit in the working of the system us brought out brilliantly in the script though the screenplay lags at many places in the film, making the film seem inordinately long for its 160 minute length.

One of the flaws of the film is the inclusion of an avoidable love track between Jai and his girlfriend Sonia (Rakul Preet Singh) which seems to put an unnecessar jerk on the pace of the film.

As a director, Neeraj pandey manages to do a competent job as he unravels the mysterious elements of the thriller layer by layer.

Also, scenes in London and Kashmir have been lavishly shot by him.which remind one of the brilliantly shot scenes in 'A Wednesday ' and 'Baby '.

In terms of performances, Manoj Bajpayee is clearly the highlight of the film, showing his class as an actor by brilliantly essaying role of a 'sturdy' colonel who matches his protege at every steps. He also impresses with his comic timing.

As the rogue officer , Siddharth Malhotra manages to impress, To match up to the immense talent of an actor like Manoj Bajpayee is no easy job which Siddharth manages to do. After 'Ittefaq', he plays the anti hero quite.

The scenes featuring the confrontation between the two actors are worth a watch and among the highlights of the film.

Naseeruddin Shah leaves an impact in a cameo as a common man who brings out the Adarsh Housing Society scam. Anupam Kher too impresses in a brief role.

Though Rakul Preet Singh does not have much of a relevance to the script, she looks beautiful in the film.

The background music by Sanjoy Chowdhury is good and carries forward the film.

'Aiyaary' is a laudable effort by Neeraj pandey at doing an espionage thriller with stellar acts by Manoj Bajpayee and Siddharth Malhotra.

Rating: 3.5/5: one for performances by Manoj Bajpayee and Siddharth Malhotra, one for the excellent espionage drama, one for direction and 0.5 for background music ).

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