Now streaming on Netflix, Mission Majnu marks the streaming service’s first major release of 2023 from India. At its core, it’s a spy thriller centered on intelligence gathering by Indian Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) agents operating deep in Pakistan, but the title is the most obvious sign that the film also has a love story angle. In fact, Mission Majnu is the story of a Secret Service agent who manages to strike the right balance between his duty to his country and his true love and care for his wife and unborn child, even though it has always been part of his cover. Here’s our spoiler-free review of the new Netflix film.
Shantanu Bagchi makes a decent directorial debut in Mission Majnu, but he admittedly has a fairly simple formula to work with. The choice of setting is pretty smart in my opinion. Viewers will immediately relate to the idea of tensions between India and Pakistan, but Mission Majnu picks an interesting era in peacetime between the two countries. This seems like the ideal setting for a film that focuses on espionage, and it does so quite tastefully.
The film opens with a history lesson covering the time and location of the film, the mid to late 1970’s and the beginning of India and Pakistan’s nuclear programs. All of this is done lightly and without going into too much detail about the political or real tensions between the two countries, which at the time were embroiled in a subcontinental “cold war” of its kind. While that means the politics of the era can feel a bit odd and overly dramatized, and the dialogue is a little overdone, it serves to remind you not to take this film too seriously either.
It also quickly introduces the main character Amandeep aka Tariq (Sidarth Malhotra) as a dressmaker working for a shop in Rawalpindi known for sewing uniforms for the Pakistan Army. He marries a visually impaired Nasreen (Rashmika Mandanna), who is his employer’s niece, and uses his position and cover to gain access to military intelligence aimed at uncovering the development of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program. The actual intel-gathering process feels a bit clownesque and ridiculously convenient for Tariq, but again, you’re not expected to take the film all that seriously.
In the first half of the film, Tariq’s own motivations and backstory are revealed, with a special focus on the fact that his father was considered a national traitor and he chose not to run from that reputation, but instead took the hard road to earn his To show patriotism and love for one’s nation. He emerges as a powerhouse at RAW and enjoys the trust of agency boss RN Kao (Parmeet Sethi), even if his direct manager Sharma (Zakir Hussain) doesn’t think much of him, while he himself sits comfortably and securely behind a desk in a shop in Delhi.
Most of the performances are as expected, although Rashmika Mandanna seems to struggle a little with speaking Urdu and takes too long to deliver even basic dialogue. Sidharth Malhotra, on the other hand, showcases his Punjabi upbringing better, transitioning slightly more easily between Punjabi-Urdu and the occasional use of English and Indian Hindi.
Most of the rest of the cast’s other performances aren’t bad, but they’re not particularly memorable either, aside from other field agents in Pakistan like Aslam (Sharib Hashmi) and Raman (Kumud Mishra) who serve as companions to Amandeep. The duo provide some light comedic relief. Unfortunately, the film regularly uses tricky dialogue to de-escalate the otherwise serious setting and tensions of the era. Tariq’s occasional “aha moments” also help tell the story of his above-average intelligence in the art of espionage, besides adding a slight hilarity to the plot.
The second half of the film is less about espionage and more about all-out action as Tariq first focuses on completing the mission and then escaping Pakistan. It also explores how Mission Majnu was never just a mission for him and the bond he formed with his “wife” in Pakistan was not compromised by his patriotic duty.
Overall, Mission Majnu is about finding the right balance between patriotic duty and personal connections. It’s a feel-good tale that, despite the spasmodic dialogue, dramatized politics, and largely ordinary performances by the cast, has its heart in the right place, telling a tale of true events that admittedly have largely been overlooked.
Mission Majnu is stream now on Netflix. In India, the film is available in Hindi, English, Tamil and Telugu.
