Reference Auto

Response: Akshay Kumar and Anupam Kher-starrer Special 26 has been topping the box office charts even during the second week, trumping the response generated by (and taking a toll on) new releases as well, owing to its mass appeal and mind blowing plot.

The movie has done well in both multiplexes as well as in single-screen halls across the country, and according to figures, total collections from Special 26 in the country stood at Rs 60 crore after the second week. Special 26 did start on a poor note but the good word passed on by those who saw the movie helped add succour to the film’s earnings.

Special 26 generated nearly Rs 6 crore in the US, Rs 1.15 crore in Australia and Rs 2 crore in the UK. And it looks like many who saw Special 26 may try for another peek at the film.

Film type: Thriller.

Cast: Akshay Kumar, Anupam Kher, Kajal Aggarwal, Manoj Bajpayee, Jimmy Shergill and Divya Dutta.

Director: Neeraj Pandey.

Time of movie: Two hours and 35 minutes.

Story: Special 26 is based on a real-life story of conmen who undertook an income tax raid in the garb of CBI officers during the 1980s.

During the raid, an unknown man, posing as CBI officer Mon Singh roped in 26 men and conducted a raid on the Opera House branch of Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri in Mumbai and disappeared with jewellery worth lakhs in broad daylight.

In the movie, Ajay Singh (played by Akshay Kumar) and his gang comprising PK Sharma (played by Anupam Kher), among others, make easy bucks by conning those with black money. But these men are not hardcore criminals and have family backgrounds like any other middle class family.

After conning a politician in Delhi and a businessman in Burrabazar of Kolkata, they are eyeing the big fish, a high profile diamond jeweller in Mumbai. CBI officer Wasim Khan (played by Manoj Bajpayee) is after them in their third and final heist. Will Wasim be able to nab these conmen or will he get conned himself?

Review: Although director Neeraj Pandey took the plot from a real-life event, he has got it all right, even though there were some unexplained areas in the storyline of Special 26. The dialogues and the humour are great, family ties have also been shown in a commendable fashion and the climax is the best a thriller could give.

But Kajal Aggarwal’s romance added to the gloom. However, Akshay, Anupam, Manoj and Jimmy were highly impressive and the film scores a perfect 10 as an entertainer.

Special 26 is a 100 per cent paisa wasool movie and a perfect one to keep you busy throughout, thanks to the mind boggling plot.

Rating: 4.5/5.