- Date of Release: 10 July 2026
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy
- Language: Hindi
- Watch On: Theatres Only
Dhamaal 4
Introduction
At a specific point within the first act in the Hindi film Dhamaal 4, a character exclaims on what is going on. And mind you, we will are in the first act wherein the main brainrot hasn’t even kickstarted. It is at this precise point that my brain literally gave in – almost brutally upset of having to watch this travesty, while remaining aloof to the premiere of Odyssey happening elsewhere in the city (that sc*m is another exp*se for another day). The lamest of lame jokes had already made their presence felt – one at a ship involving a pirate Adhoora (Ravi Kishan) who can’t get a simple task right of capturing a man – instead, shooting the foot of one of his own men and asking how is the torture. Yes, the torture is unbearable for the record – even as my brain withheld a sadistic pleasure of playing the role of the ‘feet’ that is shot at.
The other involved an absolutely random sequence of one of the protagonists Guddu (Ajay Devgn) and his ‘bro’ Johnny (Sanjay Mishra) who are on the verge of committing a ‘sin’ – one involving finding a treasure, and the other irritating the hell out of me. And did I also mention on how another character Lallan (Riteish Deshmukh) makes a mockery of the Bhojpuri language – ending every sentence with the word ‘bey’, while casually spraying fat-shaming jokes towards Paaro (Anjali Anand). This, while the trio of Adi (Arshad Warsi), Manav (Jaaved Jaaferi) and Rosy (Sanjeeda Sheikh) are keenly awaiting their turns to further irritate me. In that moment, a character saying when in the world is happening felt like a correct assumption of what I was feeling. But little did I know that this was the golden period of the film that would further degrade into a whole new level of travesty.
Story & Screenplay
Written by Paritosh Painter, Balvinder Singh Suri, Vedd Prakash, and Bunty Rathore (yes, there are four writers credited for this travesty), Dhamaal 4 aspires to borrow the template of the extremely funny Dhamaal 1 (2007), by designing a treasure map to tap into the greed of the characters. The only thing remains on how unfunny and loud this drama actually is. And did I mention tonally inconsistent too? How else would you explain random moments of horror that just pop up in a scene involving a couple of characters sneaking into a house. Or was that a metaphor for the horrors imposed on the psyche of the viewers? Or an ominous sign for the gags to follow? I could not tell, my brain was anyway tired already. Perhaps their torture was NOT my warmup afterall?
Just for the record, the dynamics between characters are as follows – Guddu and his ‘bro’ are after a treasure, while having to form a bond with the kids of a woman loved by the former. The duo of Adi and Rosy are on the verge of a divorce, given how the latter feels irritated by the antics of Manav. Do I blame her now? Lallan dreams of having an ‘extra large’ life, only to end up with an ‘extra large’ wife – and if that line made you giggle then this travesty is for you.
There is a map navigator in the mix, a goofy pirate and his side-kick who compete on the silliness quotient of the film – that literally, and randomly brings these characters together in their bid to search for the treasure – in a drama that substitutes the iconic ‘Bella Ciao’ number with words like ‘Paisa Lao’, while integrating brands at will (I wonder why do these brands wish to lose their credibility).
It must admit that it takes some talent for no jokes to land in a film that is branded to be a comedy. I still recall jokes of Dhamaal (2007) and how fresh they felt for its time – even as the gags like ‘the aeroplane engine having a red light’ or ‘Boman Boman’ or even the ‘the longest name of the driver’ still has me in splits over multiple reruns on television. But the gags here are either rehashed version of the first three Dhamaals, or original ‘fat-shaming’ jokes, or gags involving a variety of animals like a tiger, crocodile, octopus, and a snake, or random tribal folks having no identity on the island – that formulate this travesty of a drama. And did I mention random sequences involving the characters venturing through a CGI-staged storm, that had me repeatedly facepalming, so much so that my head still hurts?
The finale has to take the cake for the worst of the worst sequence of the year – wherein the characters have to save their souls in the mountains of the Bada M (yes, reverse of Bada W – talk about originality), even as the real threat remains the use of AI to create the chaos. And when a character literally throws kids across the AI-ridge, only for another character to catch them in thin air – I clocked off. I wonder why this pseudo-ballsy Indian Cricket Team cannot take catches. And what was that moral lecture at the end when the damage was already done? But you do know that this ain’t a comedy film but actually a horror film when the makers have the gall to announce the next outing of the franchise. So does that mean it is five times the headache??
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues are unfunny to the extent that it would make the infamous dialogue writer (google him, we share the first name) of last month’s Welcome To The Jungle (2026), a living legend. I mean when even kids aren’t spared of fat shaming jokes, then someone needs to be called out. And there are b*tt jokes in a film that is catered to kids? It is cringe-pro max times four (at this rate, my tryst with the multiplication table will improve). The music and BGM are a travesty of a whole new level with a revolutionary anthem like Bello Ciao being replaced with revolutionary words like ‘Paisa Lao’, something that had me facepalming to the beat.
The less said about the cinematography the better because the entire film seems to be shot on the green screen, and with generous use of AI. I have no problem with the use of AI but that must only be used as an enhancer, not the entire damn prompt. At thia point, I have seen youtube videos with a miniscule production budget having better production quality than this film worth millions of rupees. The editing pattern resembles a reel that is so isolated that it felt random after a point.
Director Rainbow Kumar….ummm Indra Kumar (don’t tell me, there is this legit joke in the film) has hit a new low. I am usually so respectful towards veteran filmmakers, even if their ability to adapt to the shifting times has worn out. But I have nothing nice to say about the filmmaking here, something that is atrocious to say the least – perhaps the worst piece of filmmaking that I have seen all year (oh wait, second worst – first is reserved for the all time travesty The Raja Saab). I wonder what was his fascination for lame jokes – what would have made the room laugh? The word isn’t even travesty anymore, it is abomination!
Performances
The performances are loud, louder, loudest by the members of the cast. The veterans like Brijendra Kala and Vijay Patkar are reduced to mere sidekicks or caricatures that had me loathing with anger. The two kids Akshara Padwal as Amaira and Riyansh Dabhi as Aarav are decent, despite the writing trying desperately to raise the decibel levels around them. Esha Gupta as Alia has hardly anything to do. Upendra Limaye is such a fine actor generally, but as Prithvi, he is only loud without landing any comedic punches. Ravi Kishan is in every film at the moment, but this marks a rare failure for him as an actor. As Adhoora, the gags involving his character just do not land – and one could attribute that to the writing.
Anjali Anand is such a fine actor, amd she shows glimpses of the same as Paaro. But I wonder how she was okay with taking such brutal fat-shaming jokes that were aimed at her with disdain. One could compare this to Bhumi Pednekar in Dum Laga Ke Haisha (2015), but there was so much sensitivity to that writing. Jaaved Jaaferi as Manav remains that one other actor who marginally fairs better than the rest, and that is the biggest compliment that I could give him for his performance.
Arshad Warsi as Adi is just so loud and unfunny, that I felt like a patient suffering from facial paralysis. Sanjeeda Sheikh as Rosy is often on the side, and the writing offers her nothing much to create an impact. Sanjay Mishra as Johnny has irritating undertones to his character, ending every sentence with the word ‘bro’. But even more irritating is Riteish Deshmukh as Lallan, who not only murders the Bhojpuri language but also tests your patience – ending every sentence with ‘Bey’, something that made me yell ‘Bey Yaar Bas Kar’. Ajay Devgn as Guddu is atleast marginally switched on, as opposed to him sleep walking through his previous roles. But the writing is so poor, that nothing that he does os enough to save this sinking ship.
Conclusion
Dhamaal 4 is a CINEMATIC MASTERPIECE……………………………………..of the lowest order. It is a uniquely hostile assault on the senses – unfunny, weaponised cringe, and an abomination that felt like a migraine multiplied by four. My forehead is still bruised from last night’s frantic facepalming, making me bitterly regret not sneaking into the Odyssey premiere instead. They say power and influence can take you anywhere, but this godforsaken film only transported me to a nameless wasteland of M-shaped mountains and characters so painfully irritating they tactfully started killing my brain cells. I went in looking for a laugh, but left trapped on a deserted island of cinematic regret, needing a prescription for my sanity. Clearly, this remains the worst film of the franchise by a countrymile. Available in a theatre near you.