Uri: The Surgical Strike is based on the 2016 surgical strikes conducted by the Indian Army. The film stars Vicky Kaushal, Yami Gautam and Paresh Rawal in the lead roles. Here’s our review of the film.

As a build-up to the ‘real action’ that is awaiting us in the second half of the film, Uri: The Surgical Strike opens with a terrifying attack on an Indian Army infantry in Chandel district of Manipur. The ambush was perpetrated by Naga extremists on June 4, 2015. The Para SF of the Indian Army had retaliated against it six days later on June 10, 2015, a mission that had caused heavy insurgent casualties.

In the film, Para SF military Major Vihaan Singh Shergill (a visibly bulked-up Vicky Kaushal) spearheads this operation. But the young, brawny man doesn’t want to be on the war field anymore. He has applied for pre-mature retirement to be by his mother’s side in New Delhi who is suffering from late-Stage Alzheimer’s. Vihaan is offered an alternative – a desk job in South Block. But for how long can a brave soldier and competent leader be away from action across the border! When the nation is under crisis, he is called back to lead probably the most audacious covert mission in the history of Indian Army – the 2016 Surgical Strikes.

One of the biggest victories of Uri: The Surgical Strike is that it almost does away with jingoism. Yes, it does feature dialogues such as “Unhe Kashmir chahiye aur humein unka sar” but there are only a handful of them. In this context, Uri: The Surgical Strike is a rather mature film. It somehow knows that it is catering to the viewer that is tired of watching the men in uniform who thump their chests to show their love and passion for the country.

On the downside though, the film visibly lacks research. The events that take place before and during the strikes are mostly fictionalised, which means that the actual details are missing. 2012’s Zero Dark Thirty, a Hollywood film made on a similar subject, had gone beyond the media reports to reveal some absolutely fascinating facts.

Nothing of this sort happens here. Writer and director Aditya Dhar makes up for the lack of research by running a family drama parallel to all that’s happening in the South Block and the battlefield.

The stunning cinematography and the VFX work ensure that Uri: The Surgical Strike does not pass off as a comic-book account of the operation. Certain juvenile elements, however, do turn you off: 1. A young intern (yes, an intern!) at the Defence Research and Development Organisation is hired by a PMO bigwig (Govind sir played by the ever-reliable Paresh Rawal, a character modelled on NSA Ajit Doval) to video-record the strikes, 2. Indian Air Force pilot Jaskeerat (Kirti Kulhari who has been wasted in a bland extended cameo) turns into Jackie Shroff of Border to appear in the sky at the last minute firing ammunition at the enemy, 3. The protagonist finds time for a hand-to-hand combat with a terrorist amid the strikes.

The performances are up to the mark except that of Yami Gautam who is miscast in the role of Pallavi Sharma, an intelligence officer. She looks too fragile to be sitting in a high-tension interrogation room and telling a suspect, “Zyada naatak kiya na toh tere akhrot tere mooh se bahar nikaal dungi.” Kirti Kulhari, I believe, would have pulled off the same role with much ease.

Vihaan keeps his promise and brings back all the men on mission alive. The same cannot be said about this film’s director though. Nevertheless, Uri: The Surgical Strike is a good one-time watch. If not for anything else, watch it for Vicky Kaushal, who brings the right amount of intensity to his role and drives the film from start to finish.