Daayra has an intriguing premise and in no time, it sucks viewers into the world. The locations are fresh, rarely seen in Hindi cinema, and it adds to the realism. The intercuts are smart, and the makers cleverly take the narrative in an unexpected direction in the second half, contrary to the audience’s assumptions about what might have transpired. However, the second half is stretched. The biggest grouse with the film is that the ending is abrupt and sudden. I couldn’t believe my eyes when the credits started to roll. It impacts the film heavily. Kareena Kapoor Khan plays a cop, but unlike the trend nowadays, she is neither depressed nor an alcoholic. Her performance is supreme. Prithviraj Sukumaran is terrific. His dialogue delivery is superb, but watch how he communicates merely through his eyes. Kshitee Jog (Ragini’s mother), Jitendra Joshi (Inspector Karad) and Kanwaljit Singh (Judge Kohli) are dependable as always. Brij Bhushan Shukla (Inspector Bala; who refuses to file an FIR), Upendra Chauhan (Vishal Mishra; team Ajooni), Ipshita Singh (Aarti; team Ajooni), Trupti Khamkar (SI Jyoti; team DCP), Ram Diwakar (Raju), Ashutosh Kumar Gupta (Bablu), Abdul Mani (Mani), Aditya Kumar (Mastan) and the actor playing Gopal and also do well. All in all, Daayra could have been another Talwar from Meghana Gulzar but ends up being an average flick.
My rating – ** ½ out of 5!