It was in 2014 when a gritty little movie put Rani Mukherji right back in the race of stardom, in which she essayed the role of Shivani Shivaji Roy in a kickass performance! That movie was Mardaani. This week releases its sequel, Mardaani 2. Its trailer seemed to tackle a topical subject, does the movie live up to the expectations…lets find out.

Set in Kota, Rajasthan, the film opens with a ruthless psycho committing a hedious crime by raping a young girl. And this forms the basic plotpoint of Mardaani 2 with Shivani Roy involved in a cat and mouse chase with the antagonist. Story isn’t novel however it is indeed topical. The screenplay is one dimensional. The need of the hour was to make the story-telling a bit convoluted and layered which was missing here. However, it is fast paced and doesn’t allow you to think which is definitely a plus!Make no mistake, some of the proceedings are chilling and at times gory. The dialogues are clap worthy and very well penned. Director Gopi Puthran has done a good job in his debut venture.

Rajesh Sharma in a cameo sizzles. Shruti Bapna and Vikram Singh Chauhan are decent. Rani Mukherji is her fiery self and continues her form from her last venture, Hichki. But the performance of the movie comes from the antagonist, the debutant Vishal Jethwa. He is truely menacing and spine chilling to the core. His performance reminds me of Shahrukh Khan in Darr or Ashutosh Rana in Sangharsh. The parts where he breaks the fourth wall and starts talking to the viewers could have been avoided though! Nevertheless an awesome performance by the debutant.

All in all, Mardaani 2 lacks the layered story telling of its earlier part but is still watchable due to its fast screenplay and all the performances especially of the antagonist. If only it was penned better…