Khufiya, which has released today on Netflix, is based in the early 2000s and is about a RAW officer who is spying on a mole in the agency. How it leads to madness in their lives and those around them, forms the rest of the film. The storyline is very different from the rest of the spy thrillers. Moreover, the film is peppered with such powerful and unexpected developments that one can’t help but get involved in the goings-on. Hence, despite the run time of 167 minutes, it doesn’t feel lengthy or dragging. On the flipside, some scenes are confusing. Also, the manner in which the agency is able to hoodwink everytime is difficult to believe. Tabu, as expected, rocks the show with not a single false note in her performance. Wamiqa Gabbi is outstanding, to say the least, and proves that she is one of the greatest actors of our times. Ali Fazal gets a bit overshadowed. Navnindra Behl (Lalita) is the surprise of the film. Shataf Figar (Brigadier Mirza) and Ashish Vidyarthi (Jeev) leave a mark. Atul Kulkarni is lovely in a cameo. The other actors who do well are Disney James (Kutty), Meet Vohra (Vikram; Krishna’s son), Alexx O Nell (Dr David Langley) and Monica Rae (Langley’s wife). Lastly, Rahul Ram is entertaining. All in all, Khufiya is one of the best films of the year.
My rating – **** out of 5!