'Rudra - The Edge of Darkness' review: Ajay Devgn pulls off a desi Luther, and how

Ajay Devgn in and as Rudra. (image: Screen grab)

I am a confirmed Luther fan, and am waiting for season 6 which will release at the end of this year (you can watch Luther on Amazon Prime Video). It was natural to read that Applause Entertainment bought the rights to the show that has been dominated by the gorgeous Idris Elba in a grey role of Biblical proportions. Never thought I would see such grown-up content on Disney, but it’s a Hotstar special and yes, rather special. Rudra is a series that is practically drool-worthy.

The setting is right, the casting is right and the stories keep you involved even though you know that there is a pattern: Impossible horrendous crime in the city, everyone looks at the Special Crimes Unit, who find the best way to catch the criminal with sharp analysis. That sharp analysis is usually a product of Rudra’s mind, and he does not always follow the rules.

Looks like the writer’s room burnt the midnight oil for this one. The series has six stories, and you begin to try and get ahead of the story and figure out how Rudra may catch the baddie. I succeeded in figuring out only two of the six tales. But the best part of this show is not figuring out how Rudra catches the culprit, but enjoying the process.

At first the trailer feels like an unabashed homage to Batman. All that reference of shadows, and the visual of Ajay Devgn perched at the edge of a skyscraper is all Batman. But then it’s good to aim for the awesomeness that is Batman without Rudra ever saying, ‘I am vengeance.’

Salaams to the writers. It’s not an easy task adapting a super successful show and maintaining the desi-ness and keeping the characters given to you. The stories keep us involved and we get to know the characters slowly.

I liked watching Tarun Gahlot who plays Robin to Ajay Devgn’s Batman. Very understated and yet comes across like a guy who would solve murders. The totally adorable Ashwini Kalsekar manages to come across as boss lady even though you are secretly wanting to cast her as a mom who cooks you great food. Atul Kulkarni is a consummate actor and can transform himself from Amey Rao Gaikwad in City Dreams to Digvijay Uncle in Bandish Bandits just as he transformed himself physically from a rugged farmer to the effeminate tamasha character in the film Natrang. This magical actor plays a friend and co-worker to Rudra, and you know all is not kosher with him when he quietly pockets money at a perpetrator’s home…

Ajay Devgn has enough broodiness in his character and he is totally believable as Rudra. I would have gone a little subtle with the beard, and stayed with a sexier stubble. But I suppose they  were looking at an exaggerated sneer. Ajay Devgn gets into the role of a man whose personal life has derailed because his work life has always come first. Only grateful that the wife (Esha Deol Takhtani) did not have too much of a role. There’s so much of Hema Malini in her that you start hearing any dialog that she says in Hema Malini’s voice.

Aaliyah Choksi is overplayed by Raashii Khanna to the point of disbelief. Unfortunately, Luther’s Alice Morgan character played by Ruth Wilson is a hard act to follow. She just got annoying after a while even though you know the show needs her.

The stories are quite grown-up in their content, and I am glad for it. Too many shows hesitate on that ‘edge of darkness’ and never really take the plunge. This is an awesome beginning, and I hope that there will be more of Rudra. As Ajay Devgn says, ‘I stand on the edge not to jump off, but to fly’.

Also read: Twitter has rave reviews for Ajay Devgn thriller Rudra: The Edge of Darkness