Operation Valentine Review

Operation Valentine is a highly ambitious project, and additionally also marks Varun Tej's debut in Hindi cinema, Manushi Chillar's debut in Telugu cinema, and Shakti Pratap Singh Hada's directorial debut. The film encompasses various themes including patriotism, aerial combat, geopolitics, terrorism, redemption and more. It also aims to create an Indian version of "Top Gun" within a limited budget. That overarching scope however exceeds the capabilities of Hada, and the movie is not what its much-hyped sleek trailer promised to deliver.

The film revolves around Arjun Dev aka Rudra (Varun Tej), a skilled pilot, and Aahna Gill (Manushi Chillar), who works in a special command centre monitoring radars for the Indian Air Force. Arjun and Aahna are happily married until the project Vajra unfolds, where Arjun defies Aahna's request and senior orders to stand down, choosing instead to attack the Pakistan Air Force. This decision results in the death of Karan (Navdeep Pallapolu), a close friend of Arjun and Aahna, causing a strain in their relationship.

Simultaneously, Pakistan is plotting another terrorist attack. Arjun and Aahna have to reunite despite their rather fraught relationship and lead a special team to thwart the impending threat and protect the nation.

Operation Valentine follows a familiar path, resulting in a movie filled with clichés. While this isn't necessarily a bad thing in the world of action adventures, the execution falls short of expectations. The film begins with a promising lineup of officers ready for action, but as the story progresses, it becomes evident that there is too much of force-fitting and shoehorning of done-to-death themes.

Also, while the film, as mentioned, offers a mix of patriotism, aerial stunts, terrorism and personal drama, these elements remain superficial, failing to delve deep into characters or relationships. The protagonist Arjun is shown to be a dedicated and aggressive fighter pilot, and his wife Aahna a composed and considerate wing commander. However, the characters feel more like cardboard cut-outs than real individuals, making it difficult for the audience to connect with their struggles. While the potential for a gripping drama was there, especially with Arjun's guilt over his friend's death and his complex relationship with Aahna, it is never quite realised.

The movie does have some good points. It's nice that it doesn't have the usual song and dance routines. The actors look great in their uniforms - I can't remember seeing such good-looking people in uniform before. Also, the film smartly avoids being overly patriotic like Fighter was.

Varun and Manushi do their best in the movie, but because the story isn't very good, their hard work doesn't come out well on screen. And even though both are attractive, when they're together in scenes as a married couple, they don't leave a strong impact.

The weakest aspect of the performances is the villain, Mir Sarwar. He neither looks the part nor acts menacingly. Paresh Pahuja, playing Yash, injects some fun into the movie, but only briefly, due to his short role. The other men in uniform look heavily scripted and artificial, and not like real IAF personnel.

The action scenes don't look real because of the bad special effects. This makes it hard for you to get into the movie. Even when there are fighter planes flying, people many in the audience are more interested in their phones. The quality of VFX is comparable to that in Adipurush. Also, many of the lines in the movie are either not impactful or too common, and they seem even worse because of bad lip sync (the movie has been made in two languages - Hindi and Telugu).

It's disappointing when a film like Operation Valentine misses the mark, especially when it's exploring new territory for Telugu cinema as a full-fledged aerial action thriller. The lack of attention to details, a shallow script, obvious comparisons to Fighter and Top Gun, and also the timing of the release crash the film mid-air. With a bit more finesse, a better script and a stronger supporting cast, it could have soared to greater heights. Instead, it remains grounded, leaving us longing for a more engaging experience.