Akshay
Kumar
is
a
creature
of
habit.
From
the
‘khiladi‘
brand
of
movies
rocking
his
boat
to
a
love
for
starring
in
biopics
and
scripts
inspired
by
true
stories
to
headlining
endless
remakes
of
South
Indian
hits,
there’s
a
pattern
to
the
man
and
his
methods.
Unsurprisingly
then,
his
latest
Sarfira
is
a
remake
of
the
2020
Suriya
vehicle,
Soorarai
Pottru.
Director
Sudha
Kongara
is
at
the
helm
of
its
Hindi
remake
as
well,
which
revolves
around
a
single
man’s
determination
to
build
a
low
cost
airline
against
all
odds.
The
Tamil
original
won
tons
of
accolades,
including
five
National
Awards.
Will
Sarfira
follow
suit?
July
12
will
tell.
Until
then,
Sukanya
Verma
rates
Akki’s
history
of
recycled
South
Indian
fare.
Bachchhan
Pandey
(2022)
Karthik
Subbaraj’s
Tamil
cult
classic,
Jigarthanda
made
a
splash
with
its
genre
bending
tale
of
what
follows
when
a
short
film
maker
gets
up,
close
and
personal
with
the
dangerous
subject
of
his
movie,
a
deadly
gangster.
But
its
over-the-top
Bollywood
remake
is
so
far
removed
from
the
content
and
intent
of
the
original,
it
completely
misses
the
point.
Akshay
Kumar’s
caricature-like
portrayal
of
a
frantic
mind
only
makes
a
hash
of
things.
Remake-o-meter:
Cuttputlli
(2022)
Akshay
slips
on
his
khaki
uniform
for
the
nth
time
to
lead
a
hill
station
police
procedural
in
pursuit
of
a
serial
killer
leaving
behind
a
trail
of
brutally
murdered
teenage
girls.
The
actor’s
subdued
delivery
is
easily
the
best
thing
about
an
otherwise
flimsy
remake
of
Ram
Kumar’s
Tamil
thriller
Ratsasan.
Remake-o-meter:
Laxmii
(2020)
Nothing
good
comes
out
of
Akshay’s
loud,
lousy
remake
of
the
2011
Tamil
horror
comedy,
Kanchana.
It’s
a
fairly
curious
premise
wherein
a
trans
woman’s
wronged
spirit
seeks
righteous
retribution
by
possessing
a
man
even
as
the
latter’s
terror-stricken
family
goes
through
the
mandatory
jump
scares
and
shockwaves.
Save
for
Sharad
Kelkar’s
valiant
efforts,
there’s
nothing
remotely
salvageable
about
Laxmii‘s
cringe-inducing
farce.
Remake-o-meter:
Gabbar
is
Back
(2015)
Akshay
gets
into
vigilant
mode,
singularly
taking
on
rampant
corruption,
in
a
classic
lost-in-translation
remake
of
the
2002
Tamil
hit
Ramanaa.
One-man
army
tearing
down
the
dishonest
bandwagon
is
enough
to
tell
how
worn-out
the
whole
idea
is.
And
neither
Akshay
nor
his
grisly
beard
can
infuse
fresh
life
in
its
done-to-death
antics.
Remake-o-meter:
Holiday:
A
Soldier
Is
Never
Off
Duty
(2014)
Though
the
A
R
Murugadoss-directed
Holiday
and
Thuppakki
were
conceived
as
a
bilingual,
the
Tamil
version
led
by
Vijay
called
dibs
first.
Its
plot
centres
on
an
intelligence
officer’s
pursuit
of
trailing
and
terminating
dangerous
sleeper
cells.
While
Akshay
is
his
reliable
self,
Holiday‘s
hare-brained
logic
failed
to
garner
much
love
among
critics.
Remake-o-meter:
Boss
(2013)
Boss
is
the
sort
of
masala
we
foolishly
believed
had
ceased
to
exist
since
the
1980s.
But
Akshay
dons
a
Haryanvi
twang,
multiple
rings
and
a
fake
frown
to
remind
us
otherwise
in
this
crummy
rehash
of
Malayalam
masala
Pokkiri
Raja
about
a
misunderstood
man’s
relationship
with
his
father
and
father
figure.
Remake-o-meter:
Rowdy
Rathore
(2012)
Two
moustached
Akshay
Kumars
take
on
baddies
in
an
overdone,
outlandish,
offensive
mishmash
of
standard
potboiler
elements
in
the
hit
Rowdy
Rathore.
The
credit
for
this
bombastic
brand
of
entertainment
goes
to
Telugu
film-maker
S
S
Rajamouli
whose
trademark
indulgences
worked
favourably
in
the
box
office
winner,
Vikramarkudu.
Remake-o-meter:
Khatta
Meetha
(2010)
Priyadarshan’s
reworking
of
his
own
acclaimed
Malayalam
dramedy,
Vellanakalude
Nadu
is
far
too
affected,
lengthy
and
dated
to
pull
off
the
merits
of
its
original.
Audiences
too
didn’t
care
much
for
Akshay’s
umbrella-lugging
portrayal
of
the
‘common
man.’
Remake-o-meter:
Kambakkht
Ishq
(2009)
Kamal
Haasan
and
Simran’s
war
of
the
sexes
in
Tamil
rom-com
Pammal
K
Sambandam
acts
as
the
inspiration
for
snooty
Akshay
and
size
zero
Kareena
Kapoor’s
ugly
fights
in
Kambakkht
Ishq.
Its
lewd,
sexist
humour
takes
away
the
focus
from
its
Hollywood,
Sylvester
Stallone-underscored
backdrop,
which
rightly
received
a
thumping
thumbs
down
from
all
and
sundry.
Remake-o-meter:
Bhool
Bhulaiyaa
(2007)
Priyadarshan
revamps
the
acclaimed
Malayalam
psychological
thriller,
Manichitrathazhu
to
produce
part
comic,
part
horror
attributes
of
Bhool
Bhulaiyaa.
While
Vidya
Balan
sure
made
an
unnerving
impression
as
Manjulika
and
Akshay’s
loony
doctor
has
its
moments,
no
adaptation
comes
close
to
Fazil’s
masterful,
mind-boggling
original.
Remake-o-meter:
Bhagam
Bhag
(2006)
Priyadarshan
reworks
Mani
C
Kappan’s
Malayalam
comic
thriller
Mannar
Mathai
Speaking
as
Bhagam
Bhag.
Despite
the
evergreen
potential
in
the
comedy
of
errors
following
a
desi
drama
troupe’s
arrival
in
London
and
the
combined
comic
brilliance
of
Akshay
and
Govinda’s
skills,
the
movie’s
bumpy
narrative
never
lets
it
become
more
than
a
sum
of
its
parts.
Remake-o-meter:
Garam
Masala
(2005)
Priyadarshan
digs
into
yet
another
of
his
old
cult
classics
to
cook
up
Garam
Masala,
In
this
Boeing
Boeing
remake,
a
1980s
Malayalam
comedy
starring
Mohanlal
and
Mukesh,
the
director
ropes
in
Akshay,
John
Abraham
and
Paresh
Rawal
to
engage
in
a
comedy
of
juggling
three
air
hostesses
by
an
incorrigible
flirt,
his
buddy-in-crime
and
their
flighty
cook.
Remake-o-meter:
Hera
Pheri
(2000)
The
Priyan-Akki
combo
has
collaborated
on
several
(okay
ONLY)
remakes
but
Hera
Pheri,
a
remake
of
the
1989
Malayalam
comedy
Ramji
Rao
Speaking
scores
mighty
high.
Akshay’s
breakthrough
performance
as
the
unemployed
imp
ribbing
his
humble
roomie
Suniel
Shetty
when
not
tricking
hyper
landlord
Paresh
Rawal,
the
hilarious
turn
of
events
triggered
by
a
wrong
number
is
now
stuff
of
Bollywood
pop-culture
legend.
Remake-o-meter:
