Bollywood began the New Year with Sriram Raghavan’s Ikkis. The biographical drama based on the life of Param Vir Chakra awardee Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal, a hero of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, released in theatres on January 1. The film was special for various reasons. Apart from being Amitabh Bachchan’s grandson Agastya Nanda’s theatrical debut and Akshay Kumar’s niece Simar Bhatia’s Bollywood debut, Ikkis marked Bollywood’s He-Man Dharmendra’s last film, posthumously released after his death. Well, filmmaker Karan Johar has now shared his honest review of Ikkis, lauding Agastya aka Aggy.
Along with a poster of Ikkis, Karan Johar wrote: “IKKIS is a love letter to peace… an honestly and earnestly told story about the absolute redundancy of war….i was so moved by so many moments of the film … it silently screams … and that’s where Sriram Raghavan gets it so right… i was moist eyed everytime Dharamji was on screen…. He has the most towering screen presence and yet can be so gentle and your heart goes out to his immensely dignified portrayal of a grieving father …. @jaideepahlawat proves time and again what an outstanding force of nature he is…he is ROCK SOLID!!”
Lauding Agastya Nanda, KJo shared, “Agastya Nanda is OUTSTANDING as the 21 year old Arun Khetarpal… his endearing innocence , silent resolve and eventual climax break out proves his metal as an artist… was so proud and excited to see him emerge as such a sincere and solid actor… can’t wait to see his journey unfold… Kudos to Dinoo and @maddockfilms for supporting this brave and new take on a war film…. Please go watch this gem of a true story….#ikkis.”
Ikkis stars Agastya as Arun and Simar as his love interest Kiran. Dharmendra, on the other hand, has beautifully portrayed the role of Arun’s father Brigadier Madan Lal Khetarpal (Retd.). Have you watched the film yet?
