The film should have been riveting. But it comes off as a slapdash, confused collage of scenes involving the famous jail break in which the real life Sobhraj broke free with several prisoners.

We have always been a fan of Richa Chadha’s acting and in Main Aur Charles too, the actress has tried delivering her best. Randeep Hooda is fatally charming as Sobhraj and this movie becomes worth watching because of him and English Vinglish fame actor Adil Hussain.

Main Aur Charles gains some momentum in the second half and gives us a closer look at Shobhraj, the man, but does not dig deeper into his psyche or reveals much about him. You should avoid this film at all costs: The narrative offers nothing at all and despite the good performances, badly-sketched characters leave little for the actors to do.

Watch it for Randeep Hooda, his performance is the single most reason you might want to check out Main Aur Charles this weekend.

Writer-director Raman spells everything out to build an aura around a character that is inspired by the infamous criminal Charles Sobhraj. But words alone are never enough to convince you that this is a man capable of seduction, deception and murder. You need to see it to believe it. That’s where Main Aur Charles fails – You are never quite sold on Charles.

Main Aur Charles is too gimmicky and hence even though not Randeep’s but the film’s charm wears off pretty soon. It fails to come across as a potent criminal drama…

Main Aur Charles is a big yawn!

Watch Main Aur Charles for the thriller it is. Not for the biopic on Charles, which it clearly is not. Watch the film for Randeep Honda, not for a dose in criminal psychology .

This was an attempt to make an engaging crime-drama, hoping to cash in on Charles Sobhraj’s larger-than-life image. But the makers have taken truly explosive material and tamed it down, choosing to glamourize the villain to a nauseating level. The film had so much more potential!

In Charles’ words, “Oyaltee has its own price to pay.” But investing time to watch this one will only mean making a ‘oyal’ buffoon of yourself.

Given the list of his criminal activities especially the jail break in 1986 and considering the fact that Sobhraj’s case is one of the most interesting and intriguing stories in the history of India, Main Aur Charles is worth a watch.

In the end, the film throws up a bunch of interesting ideas which doesn’t come together coherently in the plot. The prime problem is that the film is too much soul and very less substance. It was promising but half-baked, with the thrills falling short in supply.