Alpha

The YRF spy universe may pride itself on crossovers but the only connection it has ever established is superstar cameos make for crowd-pleasing attractions every time they get each other’s back in lavishly mounted action set pieces. Even at their scene stealing best – think Katrina Kaif’s towel clad fisticuffs in Tiger 3 or Deepika Padukone’s ice skating chase in Pathaan – the ladies must settle for secondary status. In Alpha, women are shown as the face of the franchise but still dictated by men in power as fathers and foes they must contend with for the sake of spinoffs. Director Shiv Rawail’s half-hearted diversion from the male-dominated genre means to give the girls their due but only ends up failing their cause in a generic, lacklustre actioner.