After Satyameva Jayate and Parmanu, John Abraham keeps up 'desh bhakti' with Romeo Akbar Walter

Joginder Tuteja

Hail the new 'desh bhakt' hero in town who is all set to score a hat-trick of films that have nationalism as an integral part of the plot.

John Abraham, who started his career with Jism [2003] more than a decade ago, has found his bearings in an altogether different genre in the current times. After delivering back to back successes in Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran and Satyameva Jayate last year, he is now set to bring on screen Romeo Akbar Walter, which in short is R.A.W.

A smart take on Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), the foreign intelligence agency of the country, R.A.W. has John Abraham playing an Indian spy and a patriot who penetrates Pakistani territory and makes a living there while also passing on intelligence back to his country.

While the promo of this Robby Grewal-directed film has already made a splash, what is particularly exciting is the kind of choices John Abraham is making when it comes to his Bollywood career.

Though he has delivered quite a few successful films across genres in his eventful years so far [Housefull 2, Race 2, Welcome Back, Shootout at Wadala, Dostana, Dhoom and more], he is focusing extensively in being the man in the uniform of late.

The change started with Force, where he played a cop. The film was a success and that was followed by Force 2, which was decent too. He also did Madras Cafe, which again was a thriller, that showcased John Abraham in a different avatar altogether. As a man on a mission, he came up with the right intensity for the part.

However, it was the release of Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran that made many stand up and notice John for the actor that he is. The film was released sans any promotion or marketing and still managed to do good business, courtesy the engaging narrative and good performances. While John's stocks rose with the film, he was up for an even bigger success once Satyameva Jayate hit the screen. Though he played an anti-hero in the film, someone who didn't mind killing those in the business of corruption, the intent was there to 'hail the truth'.

This is now expected in his upcoming release Romeo Akbar Walter as well, where he is playing a common man thrust with a huge responsibility. Set in 1971 when India was on the verge of war with Pakistan, the film has Jackie Shroff playing an intelligence officer who recruits the character played by John Abraham to play a major role in this mission. Resultantly, John would be seen in multiple looks during the film as he plays three different parts of Romeo, Akbar and Walter.

What also works in favour of the film is its theme, which is pretty topical even though there is a gap of almost half a century between the current times and the era in which the film is set. There is tension prevailing between India and Pakistan and one waits to see how audiences react to Romeo Akbar Walter when it hits the screen.

It was recently seen that if presented well on screen, such themes are well accepted and hailed by the audiences. If John had delivered a success in Parmanu - The Pokhran Story last year, then Vicky Kaushal's Uri - The Surgical Strike has turned out to be even bigger by emerging as an all-time blockbuster. Now with the starry presence of John Abraham, Romeo Akbar Walter — which is produced by Viacom18 Motion Pictures, Dheeraj Wadhwan, Ajay Kapoor, Vanessa Walia, and Gary Grewal — has turned out to be exciting indeed.

As for John Abraham, he would soon be moving from one patriotic film to another as Batla House gears up for Independence Day release. While one waits to see what he has to offer in the Nikkhil Advani-directed film, rest assured that he would have quite some aces up his sleeve with Romeo Akbar Walter, set to hit the screens on April 5.