Sky Force
- Director
- Sandeep Kewlani, Abhishek Anil Kapur
- Studio
- Maddock FilmsJio Studios
- Release Date
- 24 January 2025
- Running Time
- 125 min
- Language
- Hindi
- Country
- India
- Budget
- ₹160.00 Cr
- Box Office
- ₹168.88 Cr
Review
Akshay Kumar's latest swing at patriotic war drama shows genuine ambition, and there's real meat on these bones. The film deserves credit for resisting the urge to drape itself in jingoistic excess, instead focusing on the human cost of soldiering and the quiet dignity of sacrifice. Kumar delivers what might be his most restrained work in years—a performance that finds strength in vulnerability rather than flexing muscles at the camera. Veer Pahariya proves he's not just riding on star coattails, and the action choreography has teeth. When the film zeroes in on its emotional moments, it actually lands with impact. This isn't your typical Bollywood flag-waver, and that's precisely what makes it worthwhile.
The problem is that ambition doesn't automatically equal execution. The screenplay is a mess—narratively scattered and tonally all over the place, as if three different scripts got spliced together without proper editing. You've got a character-driven intimate drama fighting for attention against a sprawling military epic, and neither wins convincingly. The film's refusal to fully commit to either approach means it keeps stumbling over itself just when you're getting invested. The bones are there for something genuinely special, but the structure is so disjointed that it squanders much of its own potential. It's a film that knows what it wants to say but keeps tripping on the delivery.
Rating: 6.5/10
Storyline
So basically, this movie kicks off in 1971 when Pakistan decides to strike an Indian air base out of nowhere, and it all ties back to this whole Kashmir situation. The Indians manage to capture a Pakistani pilot named Ahmed, and when they interrogate him, they find out he's responsible for killing an Indian officer back in the 1965 war. This discovery becomes the thread that connects everything together and sets the whole story in motion.
The main focus then shifts back to 1965, where we follow this talented but rebellious pilot named Vijaya (called Tabby by his friends) who's part of an air squadron at an Indian military base. He's got this amazing mentor figure in Group Captain Ahuja, and the two of them share a really special bond. Vijaya's always breaking the rules and getting into trouble, but he's genuinely skilled and loves his country, which makes him pretty likeable despite his antics.
Things get intense when they learn that America has been helping Pakistan big-time by providing them with these super advanced fighter jets called Star Strikers. Ahuja gets orders to take Vijaya and go on a secret mission into Pakistani territory to scout out what they're planning. They manage to spot weapons and equipment being moved around, and Vijaya bravely gets photos as evidence, even though they almost get caught. When they bring this information back, Ahuja pushes for India to strike first and prevent an attack, but the higher-ups are hesitant because of international politics and human rights concerns.
