Deva Movie Review: Shahid Kapoor, Pooja Hegde’s Thriller Blends Grit, Action And Intrigue

Last Updated:January 31, 2025, 14:51 is

Deva Movie Review & Rating: The film sees Shahid Kapoor in top form as a rebellious cop caught in a gripping web of mystery and vengeance.

Deva Movie Review: Shahid Kapoor delivers a power-packed performance in Rosshan Andrrews’ action thriller.

Deva Movie Review: It’s been a while since Bollywood delivered a masala action entertainer that strikes the right balance — thrilling but not overindulgent, stylish yet not hollow. The kind where high-octane action meets a brooding, effortlessly cool protagonist, vengeance fuels every move, and the plot is simple enough to keep your brain on cruise control. Of course, the genre’s usual tropes remain — power-packed dialogues, gravity-defying stunts, and female characters who, unfortunately, orbit the hero’s journey rather than shaping their own. Rosshan Andrrews’ Deva, starring Shahid Kapoor, Pooja Hegde, Pavail Gulati, and Pravesh Rana, attempts to fit this mold, but with an unexpected twist that sets it apart.

The story kicks off in Mumbai with a scene drenched in tension—Dev (Shahid Kapoor), a cop with an unfiltered attitude and a relentless drive, speeds through a dimly lit tunnel on his bike. He dials up his superior, Farhan (Pravessh Rana), his voice tinged with triumph: he’s cracked the case. But before the gravity of his revelation can sink in, fate intervenes. His bike skids, balance lost, and in a flash, he’s hurled to the ground, his head smashing against the tunnel wall.

Cut to a sterile hospital room. Dev, unconscious and restrained by wires and monitors, mumbles under the haze of sedatives. His incoherent words catch the attention of the nurse on duty. Moments later, Farhan enters, his face etched with concern—only to be met with a devastating realization. Dev doesn’t recognize him. A severe head injury has wiped parts of his memory, leaving behind a scrambled mess of past and present.

And so, the film rewinds, plunging us into Dev’s past—one painted in equal parts swagger and rebellion. In contrast to his current fragile state, we see a magnetic and brash Dev, effortlessly dancing at his sister’s wedding, his presence commanding attention. Here, we also learn of his bond with Farhan, who is more than just his superior—his family, his brother-in-law.

Meanwhile, across the city, a separate storm brews. Rohan D’Silva (Pavail Gulati), a righteous officer, oversees a routine traffic stop while chatting with his girlfriend. The mundanity is shattered when a high-ranking politician, Atre, refuses to comply with police checks, throwing his weight around with brazen arrogance. Rohan, though insistent, is powerless against Atre’s influence. As the minister smugly drives away, unaware, Dev watches from a distance.

What follows is classic Dev—bold, unpredictable, and unruly. As he and Rohan ride through the city, Dev takes a detour, leading them straight to Atre’s residence. With no regard for protocols, he pushes Rohan to retrieve the car keys himself. When diplomacy fails, Dev makes his grand entrance—fists flying, taking down Atre’s men with brute force, his words as fiery as his punches. It’s an introduction befitting a larger-than-life cop, one who operates on his own terms.

Dev is no conventional hero. He’s hot-headed, impulsive, and borderline reckless. He chain-smokes, disregards orders, and even carries on an affair with his married neighbour. He’s the kind of officer who commands fear, not admiration. And yet, beneath the bravado lies an unshakable sense of justice. His commitment to his job is unwavering, especially in his pursuit of Prabhat Jadhav—a ruthless gangster who always manages to slip through the cracks.

But then, tragedy strikes. A botched operation ends in an explosion, claiming the lives of several officers and leaving one permanently disabled—the father of Dev’s love interest, Diya (Pooja Hegde). The incident pushes Dev and his team into overdrive. With every lead slipping through their fingers, one chilling truth emerges—there’s a mole within the force, feeding information to Prabhat, sabotaging every move they make.

Diya, a fierce journalist, is one of the few who dares to challenge Dev’s methods. When she exposes his brutality in an article, he storms into her office demanding answers. She doesn’t back down, highlighting the struggles of lower-rank officers in a corrupt, hierarchical system. It’s a moment that hints at something deeper—a conversation about power and abuse. But, unfortunately, Diya’s character remains confined to the periphery, never truly breaking out of the role of the ‘concerned love interest.’

As the chase for Prabhat intensifies, Dev and his team finally corner him. But this time, something is different—Prabhat appears unprepared, caught off guard. As they storm his hideout, an unexpected assault unfolds—the locals, seemingly unprovoked, turn violent, ambushing the police. Amidst the chaos, Prabhat makes a run for it, Rohan in hot pursuit. The chase ends in a heartbeat-stopping moment—Prabhat, ever the survivor, gains the upper hand, gun pointed at Rohan. And just as the trigger is about to be pulled, Dev emerges from the shadows, his shot finding its mark first.

But Dev doesn’t bask in the victory. Instead, he steps back, allowing Rohan to take the credit, knowing how much it would mean to his friend’s family. It’s a rare moment of quiet nobility from a man so often driven by instinct rather than sentiment.

However, peace is fleeting. Days later, during a ceremony honouring Rohan’s bravery, a bullet rips through the air, striking him in the chest. The celebration turns to horror as he collapses, lifeless.

And then, we snap back to the present—Farhan, watching over Dev in the hospital, recounting the events leading up to his accident. The case Dev had solved before his crash is now lost within the fog of his fractured memory. As he struggles to piece together the truth, one question looms—will Dev be able to untangle the web of deception once again? Or will the secrets buried in his past consume him before he can reclaim his truth?

Rosshan Andrrews’ Deva isn’t your typical Bollywood masala flick—it wrestles with its own genre tropes while attempting to carve out a fresh identity. The first half treads familiar ground, populated with well-worn character archetypes and a predictable narrative structure. While it doesn’t push the envelope like Singham Again or Pushpa 2, it avoids excessive action gimmicks, delivering well-executed police chases and fight sequences that, despite their template-driven nature, manage to feel engaging. The dialogues are sharp and grounded, and the sporadic humour injects a much-needed liveliness into an otherwise straightforward opening act.

But it’s in the second half that Deva truly comes into its own. Shahid Kapoor undergoes a stark transformation—from a cocky, hot-headed cop who refuses to wear his uniform to a subdued, battle-worn investigator grappling with memory loss, the haunting absence of his best friend Rohan, and the enigma surrounding his mysterious death.

Andrrews masterfully contrasts Dev’s pre- and post-interval personas, using Kapoor’s towering screen presence and chameleonic ability to breathe depth into the character. The film accelerates as Dev, now a fragmented version of his former self, begins piecing together scattered clues, facing people who remember him vividly while he struggles to recall them. The unpredictability of the second half keeps you on edge, with revelations unravelling in a way that compensates for the first half’s linear storytelling.

At the heart of Deva is Shahid Kapoor, delivering a performance that is both familiar and fresh. His portrayal in the first half might evoke shades of Kabir Singh, but he injects enough distinctiveness to keep Dev from feeling like a retread. His transformation in the second half—marked by restraint, vulnerability, and a detective-like determination—cements his versatility as an actor.

Pavail Gulati’s Rohan is another standout, radiating sincerity and moral integrity. His character serves as the emotional anchor of the story, making his fate all the more impactful. Pravessh Rana, as Farhan, brings gravitas to his role as Dev’s superior—supportive yet firm, a man who understands Dev better than anyone else. Meanwhile, Pooja Hegde’s Diya, though competently performed, remains underutilized, her character merely scratching the surface of its potential. The same can be said for Kubbra Sait, an actress of immense talent who, unfortunately, is relegated to the periphery when she could have added deeper narrative layers.

Visually, Deva carries the aesthetic weight of a neo-noir thriller with the textured depth of a European crime drama. Cinematographer Amit Roy crafts a moody, stylized Mumbai—one that pulsates with a noir-like atmosphere, further enhanced by A. Sreekar Prasad’s seamless editing. The film’s production design, locations, and Kapoor’s sleek styling lend it a sophisticated, almost graphic-novel-inspired allure. Jakes Bejoy’s background score effectively amplifies the tension without overwhelming the narrative, while songs like Marji Cha Maalik and Bhasad Macha provide serviceable but forgettable musical moments.

Ultimately, Deva finds its voice in its second half, evolving from a standard action thriller into a gripping, character-driven mystery. It may not be without its flaws, but its unpredictability, strong performances, and polished execution make it a compelling watch. If you’re willing to ride out the familiar beats of the first half, the latter rewards you with intrigue, intensity, and a noir-infused take on the Bollywood action genre.