Writer/Director: Aditya Chopra
Starring: Anil Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and Bobby Deol
‘A Disappointment’
Not many actresses in Bollywood have built a legacy as strong as Alia Bhatt. Ever since her stardom in the 2000’s, Bhatt has proven to be a great actress. Whether it’s rebellious teenagers, passionate rappers or lovers that face barriers, Bhatt has portrayed countless powerful characters. Arguably, Bhatt’s best strength as an actress has always been her bravery. She is one of those bold actresses that has seldom been afraid to take risks in her career. Through her willingness to take on risky roles, Bhatt has built a legacy that’s unforgettable. Even when she isn’t the main focus of a movie, Bhatt has always created a lasting impression. Throughout her career, Bhatt has made several unforgettable films that are worth talking about without a single doubt.
Now, Bhatt is back on a big-screen and her strengths as an actress are clearly evident in her latest film “Alpha”. Released in 2026, Shiv Rawail’s movie offered a strong portrait of female assassins. Packed with mediocre action sequences, clumsy storytelling and strong acting, it’s a passable blockbuster. At the centre of it all is a terrific performance by Ali Bhatt, who embodies a bold female assassin. Although “Alpha” is an engaging blockbuster, it isn’t a flawless film. It suffers from uneven pacing that often tests viewers’ patience. Nevertheless, it offers engaging entertainment which would satisfy fans of Alia Bhatt.
“Alpha” tells the story of a female assassin embarking on a journey to conquer trauma in India. Alia Bhatt portrays Sita, a powerful female assassin with strong devotion to her profession. Raised by the rogue commander Fateh (Bobby Deol), Bhatt has always had a strong training session to become a skilled assassin. However, Sita’s life changes when she discovers the dark truth about her past life in danger. Faced with a serious dilemma, Sita questions her devotion towards a great profession that impacted her persona. As all the odds are stacked against her favour, it’s hard for Sita not to wonder whether she will overcome demons of her past which remain with her forever.
Shiv Rawail is fascinated with the stories of assassins facing adversity. His movie “The Railway Men – the Untold Story of Bhopal 1984” offered a powerful portrait of brave railway workers. With “Alpha”, however, the filmmaker made his first blockbuster about female assassins. It marked the filmmaker’s first attempt to capture the hardships faced by female assassins facing adversity but he succeeded. Using stunning cinematography, Rawail captures a female assassin going on a journey to find identity. Taking inspiration from Meghan Gulzar’s “Raazi”, Rawail uses handheld camerawork to capture the lives of assassins on a journey. For instance, the handheld camerawork elevates the training scene. During this intense scene, Sita gets training to become an assassin by her bold rogue commander. Handheld camerawork is a tricky technique. As Karan Johar’s “Rocky Aur Ranii Ki Prem Kahani” proved, handheld camerawork elevates Bollywood films about broken families. Nevertheless, it works well. Through strong visuals, Rawail captures the hardships that fierce female assassins are facing.
Amidst the thrilling action sequences, it’s a shame that “Alpha” finds little time to tell a compelling story. Rawail’s decisions to focus solely on the grand spectacle is bold but it leaves little room for storytelling. The script is arguably the weakest aspect of the film, and could have easily been improved with better focus. One area where the film falters is character development. For instance, we are barely given any reasons to care for the female assassins beyond the fact that they are portrayed by famous actors. Storytelling is one of the most important aspects of any Bollywood blockbuster, and in this sense it is a shame to admit “Alpha” falters. Therefore, “Alpa” is one of those Bollywood action films not everyone will adore.
Thankfully, however, the fantastic acting keeps the movie from falling apart. Each actor enhances the film to another level even when it threatens to fall apart.
Alia Bhatt delivers one of her best career performances as Sita. Bhatt first earned appreciation playing romantic heroines in classic Bollywood movies. With “Alpha”, however, she takes on her most complex role. It isn’t simple to play a fierce female assassin facing adversity but she pulls it off successfully. This is the actress unlike you have ever seen her before: intense, strong and unforgettable in her most complex role. With riveting expressions, she captures the angst, bravery and strong spirit of a female assassin embarking on missions. It’s a bold performance that serves as the highlight of the movie.
While the movie is mainly a bold showcase for Bhatt, the supporting cast is also great and worthy of appreciation. Bobby Deol is breathtaking, bringing out larger than life nature of a rogue commander that trains women in danger. Anil Kapoor is amazing, capturing the shining personality of a bold assassin embarking on missions that prove to be frightening. Lastly, Hrithik Roshan is worthy of appreciation. Despite his limited screen time, he brings charisma toward the movie.
Ultimately, it’s a shame that these actors are not able to sustain the film’s length. At nearly 2 and a half hours, the film suffers from a long running time. Rawail’s decisions to integrate political subplots into the movie is admirable but damages the pacing. Due to this faulty decision, scenes focusing on the grim acts of terrorism aren’t always as engaging as journeys of female assassins. Therefore, “Alpha” is one of those Bollywood movies which not everyone is going to be certain to adore.
Nevertheless, fans of Alia Bhatt may enjoy “Alpha” and so will audiences which seek enjoyable entertainment. A breathtaking Bollywood blockbuster, it honours a great actress audiences treasure.
A dazzling depiction of female assassins haunted by dark childhood memories of tension, it’s a brilliant reminder of a bold Bollywood actress that has built a strong reputation through her abilities to portray compelling characters in memorable films that are definitely without a doubt worthy of appreciation.
3/5 stars
The Film Buff 