Ikkis

I could watch Ikkis twice. The one thing you observe in Ikkis, decidedly a war film; makes no mistake, is the immersive, claustrophobic insides of a bloody battle-tank as the Indian Army advances across the border.

Ikkis narrates the story of young soldier Arun Khetarpal's valour in the 1971 war. The film sensitively explores war's lasting personal and familial trauma beyond patriotic heroism.

Ikkis rises above expectations as we see the templated material of a war hero biopic tell an important film of our times. Where Dhurandhar leaned into aggressive bloodlust through its acerbic storytelling, Ikkis moves in the opposite direction, asking us to see people beyond uniforms, slogans, or sides. War is hell may not be a new message, but it is one worth repeating and Raghavan states it powerfully here.

A moving Indo-Pak war drama that puts humanity first. Dharmendra and Jaideep Ahlawat breathe life into Ikkis through a sublime, soulful interplay of grief.

I exited the theatre after watching Ikkis with a heavy lump in my throat. Was it the bittersweet realisation that we were witnessing the final bow of the legendary Dharmendra? Certainly. Was it the film itself? To some extent. But above all, it was the weight of the truth.

There's a wistfulness about Ikkis, a period action drama based on the life of India's youngest Param Vir Chakra awardee, Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal.

Sriram Raghavan's first war film hits differently. Ikkis is more than just a tale of bravery, it is about love, loss, grief, and the hope for a peaceful tomorrow.

Ikkis distinguishes itself from nearly every war movie made in the past few decades. Raghavan downscales as well as cools down the military conflict drama, reducing it to its basic elements of bravery and battlefield strategy. The film proves that it's possible to recast such stories and rescue them from excess.

Sriram Raghavan turns to the Battle of Basantar to honour a real-life martyr and take a shot at peace at a time when the world seems to be warming up to war.