Neeraj Pandey's 'Baby' is an edge-of-the-seat spy thriller which will keep you thrilled throughout the running time. The film doesn't have the heft of originality which 'Special 26' had as a speciality, but it's a film that's as much entertaining. Akshay Kumar is in a raw form here- and it might be his most gripping, heroic performance. Taapsee Pannu makes an assured debut. Watch her as she kicks the butt of the enemies. There are many such bits on screens, and these bits make you glued to the screens. It's an immensely enjoyable and entertaining film which has a concrete- if not coherent- script. But most importantly, it's weakness isn't jingoism.

The Republic Day on a Monday inevitably meant that the film makers had an extended weekend to take advantage of & Neeraj Pandey's "Baby", which deals with espionage seemed an apt choice. There was a palpable sense of anticipation after all Neeraj had wowed the audience previously with "A Wednesday" & "Special Chabbis". Even the promos of his latest aroused curiosity, as it seemed like a slickly executed movie. So will it live upto the standard of its predecessors???

Baby is an undercover intelligence agency that was formed with the intention to curb the rising acts of terrorism. Ever since its inception, it's highly skilled agents have foiled countless attempts of the militants who were keen to unleash a reign of terror across the nation. Feroze Ali Khan (Danny Denzongpa) was the Chief of Baby & Ajay (Akshay Kumar) was his ace among the agents. The film unfolds with Ajay negating the threat posed by a double agent & in the process, unearths the truth that the dreaded terrorist, Bilaal (Kay Kay Menon) facing trial in the Indian jail was likely to be rescued. All of this was done under the orders of the Pakistan's terror outfit, Lashkar whose leader was Maulana Mohammad Rehman (Rashid Naz). So can Ajay & his fellow agents rise to the biggest challenge that they had ever faced???

Neeraj Pandey credentials needs no introduction as he has already proved it beyond doubt with his previous two ventures. In his latest offing, he has gone for a much larger scale as the characters trot across the globe in their mission to bring the offenders to justice with some impressively executed stunt sequences. However, unlike his other movies; the plot lacks the tautness or reality that you would expect from him as some of the scenes seem too far fetched be it Bilaal's escape or the rather lack of professionalism on the part of the terrorists.. But even then, I thoroughly enjoyed it as the latter half really hooks the audience with some edge of the seat sequences which kinda reminded me of "Argo". As for the technical aspects, the visuals by Sudeep Chatterjee was fantastic along with the action sequences choreographed by Cyril Raffaelli and Abbas Ali Moghul. Even the BGM by Sanjay Chowdhury deserves praise while the editing by Shree Narayan Singh was crisp.

Akki was fantastic as the undercover agent & seemed every bit convincing be it with his stunts or his suave nature. Danny Denzongpa imparted the sense of seriousness that you would associate with such a character. Inspite of appearing towards the latter half of the movie, Anupam Kher provides the hilarious moments in his own characteristic manner. Rashid Naz was menacing while Kay Kay Menon didnt have much to do. Among the rest, Rana Duggabatti was imposing with his bulky frame while Tapsee Pannu steals the scene in her brief appearance.

Verdict: The previous track record of Neeraj would ensure a credible initial, however it wont cater to the masses as such. The plot is pretty average as it does have some notable loopholes & seems far fetched at times, but still it was brilliantly executed & keeps you hooked for sure. In short, check it out !!!

Rating: 3.75/5

Regards...Ben

This May Be Considered Akshay Kumar's Best Movie Ever.Great Story, Good Execution And Akshay At His Best, Though It Loses Pace Sometimes But That Don't Effect Much