Hrithik does all the heavy lifting and remains the only bright spot in this dispirited mess of a movie. He still has the moves. What he needs is a plot.

If you’re a die-hard Hrithik Roshan fan, it’s a good weekend watch for you. If you aren’t, you’ll still not mind watching this usual run of the mill film.

Kaabil serves nothing beyond an unabashed platform to vaunt a seething Hrithik, sentimental Hrithik, snarky Hrithik, sly Hrithik or spry Hrithik…

Some of the action seems far-fetched and the way Rohan uses his ability to mimic voices in order to create disarray among the cops and the thugs is near-farcical.

Yet, when he gets down to committing the perfect crime, leaving no trace behind of the destructive act, Kaabil acquires some momentum and heft.

The boy-meets-girl story of the first half hour is a cloying affair. Rajesh Roshan’s dated soundtrack consists songs that drag the proceedings. It doesn’t help that Gupta, who hearts item numbers in clubs, throws in a terrible one in “Saara Zamaana”. The sudden mawkish tone in between the action furthermore disrupts Kaabil. Much like Mohenjo Daro, which showed that one man alone cannot save a civilisation, Hrithik Roshan alone cannot save the film.

Kaabil is no where near perfect! Strictly for die-hard Hrithik fans who want to wash off Mohenjo Daro memories.

A blind couple is terrorised by local goons: the wife is raped and the cops are unhelpful because the perpetrator is the brother of a local politician. The young blind man decides to take the law into his own hands. No one takes him seriously because of his disability. But he takes his revenge slowly and surely and the police are unable to pin the murders of the rapists on him. This revenge drama is perhaps Hrithik Roshan’s best work, but hampered by a deathly slow pace.

Kaabil isn’t the shipwreck it had been made out to be. But that isn’t saying much, as despite going in with seriously low expectations it will be difficult to justify spending a national holiday watching this film that extends to a run time of just over two hours.