Poor writing, unrealistic plot points, and weak performances drag Sarzameen down, sighs Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
On July 15, 2013, India's telegram service shut down after 163 years.
In the days before fax machines, e-mail, mobile phones, a telegram was the fastest way to send news across.
Technology evolved with the arrival of cheaper and quicker methods like the telephone and later the fax machine.
In 1996, the Internet arrived in India and changed everything.
It changed again when mobile phones arrived, and soon everyone was texting on WhatsApp: Instant, easy and free.
But it appears that Director Kayoze Irani is still stuck in the past.
In his debut film Sarzameen, the army is sending and receiving messages on a fax machine -- to warn about a terrorist attack, no less!
A fax machine? In 2025? Really?
Unfortunately, that isn't the only problem with Sarzameen.
The film has *so many* issues!
The story is loosely inspired by Ramesh Sippy's 1982 film Shakti, where Dilip Kumar plays an honest police officer who refuses to give in to the kidnappers who have kidnapped his son.
In Sarzameen, the same father-versus-son conflict plays out. But this time, the setting is Kashmir, and instead of a police officer, the father is an army officer.
Kajol plays the mother, stepping into the role similar to what Raakhee played in Shakti.
Early in the film, we see Kashmir in chaos.
A terrorist group has suddenly become active and is carrying out attacks across the region.
Prithviraj Sukumaran plays Colonel Vijay Menon, who is chosen to lead the fight against the terrorists.
But when he learns terrorists have kidnapped his son and are demanding the release of two terrorists in exchange, he faces an impossible choice.
Kajol asks him, 'Your duty or your son?'
Menon answers, 'Sarzameen ki salamati se badh kar mere liye kuch bhi nahi, chahye woh mera beta hi kyon nahi (Nothing is more important to me than the safety of this land, not even my own son)'.
Why does he hate his son so much?
Flashbacks reveal that young Ibrahim was always seen as weak.
He stammered, lacked confidence, and could not live up to the high standards set by his military father.
His father's words still echo in his head: 'Kamzor log is vardi ke layak nahi hote(Weak people are not worthy of this uniform)'.
So yes, the story has emotion, conflict and drama.
But here's the problem: It's very predictable.
In the first 20 minutes, you can guess how things will unfold.
And so many loop holes in the plot!
For instance, even though the army has been warned of a terrorist attack during a major event, a bomb is planted under the stage without anyone noticing.
No metal detectors? No sniffer dogs? No basic security?
This is the Indian Army we are talking about!
The writing feels lazy. It expects the audience to suspend all logic.
Prithviraj tries hard. He is a talented actor and commits to his role. But even he can't save the film.
Ibrahim Ali Khan struggles with dialogue delivery and emotion.
He looks good in the action scenes but when it comes to acting, he fails.
Thankfully, the film does not include a romantic track for him. Watching him try to act in another love story might have been even harder.
Kajol is a disappointment too.
She's a powerful actress with a great screen presence, but here, she feels completely wasted.
Her chemistry with Prithviraj doesn't work, and their scenes together feel forced.
The film tries to end with a twist, which is meant to be bold and creative. But when the story itself is so weak, even a unique ending can't make up for it.
Sarzameen had potential.
The themes of loyalty, duty, family and patriotism are powerful.
The backdrop of Kashmir adds intensity.
But the poor writing, unrealistic plot points, and weak performances drag the film down.
Sarzameen streams on JioHotstar.
© 2025