The timing is unintentionally perfect. Emraan Hashmi starrer military biopic “Ground Zero” releases just days after the horrific Pahalgam terror attack in Kashmir. While the film is set in the early 2000s and talks of a BSF commandant, Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey, the film is set in Kashmir – a state that is being discussed widely at present. The situation from the early 2000s to the present day may vary, but the enemy – terrorism remains the same. But despite its relevance to the nation’s current mood, “Ground Zero” is a typical military biopic that Bollywood has churned out in dozens since time immemorial.
Emraan Hashmi dons the uniform to play a daredevil BSF commandant, Narendra Dubey. Posted in Kashmir at a time when Jaish-e-Mohammad orchestrated several major terror attacks across the country, Dubey is given charge to work in coordination with the IB in Delhi and hunt the terror outfit’s chief, Ghazi Baba. The man is considered the mastermind of several terror attacks across the country, including the 2001 Parliament Attack and 2003 Akshardham Temple attack, which makes him one of the deadliest terrorists. As Dubey and co set out on nabbing Ghazi Baba, they have very little information about him.
The man operates from shadows and gives sermons in code. No one knows how he looks, and how one can reach him. To get to him, Dubey knows he first has to crack the pistol gang, which recruits young college boys and offers them a meager amount in exchange for one Fauji’s life. Dubey befriends a local Kashmiri boy who eventually becomes his access to the secret terror outfits with a possible link to the main man, working from the heart of Srinagar. But can Dubey reach Gazi Baba, forms the rest of the story. Written by Sanchit Gupta and Priyadarshee Srivastava, “Ground Zero” has a very no-fuss, no-frills linear narrative. While the focus remains on the military and its extensive hunt for the mastermind, the film also focuses on Dubey’s family life, where his wife Jaya (Sai Tamhankar) provides him the familial support that a man of his stature and nature needs.
While the action sequences are edgy, delivering several tense moments, the film’s drama elements are less impactful. Considering Dubey is shown to be a daredevil, he often gets impulsive and breaks protocols, which has repercussions. The writers never flesh out the scenes where Dubey is ridden by guilt, nor does the script give Hashmi the scope to experiment and give his character more depth. It’s a one-tone character, who knows how to be on field and kill the bad guy, nothing more. The screenplay is also very predictable. You almost know who will die at what point and what flashbacks montages will be played out to mourn the character’s end throughout the film.
Military biopics tend to lean towards chest-thumping patriotism, blaming and over-the-top jingoism. To its credit, Ground Zero steers clear of such tropes. Instead, Dubey is shown as a man who has faith in the locals, who doesn’t want to kill them arbitrarily or put them in jail, but understands the issue at hand and befriends them.
Hashmi and Tamhankar are good in their roles, even though their characters don’t have many layers. Zoya Hussain plays an IB officer who seems unnecessarily hyper. Shot in Kashmir, the frames by cinematographer Kamaljeet Negi are beautiful,l and the aerial and panoramic shots depict the beauty of the valley well.
“Ground Zero” is well-intended but doesn’t offer anything new. Kashmir and terrorism in the state a topic that evokes strong emotions among all of us. “Ground Zero” provides a tried and tested story. It oscillates between presenting facts as they are and being a commercial action thriller. The result is ultimately middling. (Agencies)
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