Someone who has grown up cheering for every slow-motion walk, one-liner, and shirtless pose Salman Khan has ever delivered, Sikandar felt like a betrayal. This wasn’t just a bad film — it was a lazy, illogical, and downright insulting attempt that tried to coast on stardom rather than storytelling.
Let’s get straight to the point: Sikandar is a mess.
The most obvious and frankly ridiculous effort was the director’s obsession with camera angles and editing trickery to hide Salman Khan’s age and appearance. Wide shots cut too quickly. Close-ups were always playing with lighting or shot from high angles. And then there’s the oddest choice of all — only a couple of scenes in the entire film show Salman with his shirt tucked in. Why? Clearly, to conceal his expanding midsection. It’s not just misleading — it’s an insult to the audience’s intelligence. We notice. We care. Especially when the whole movie is trying to portray Salman as a youthful, unstoppable action hero.
Songs for Festivals, Not Story: There’s a clear calculation in the song placements — one for Eid, one for Holi — like emotional bait for festive viewers. But even these moments, where Bollywood traditionally shines, were underwhelming. Forgettable lyrics, dull choreography, and melodies that feel recycled from leftover templates. None of the music elevates the film; it just bloats the runtime.
What hurts the most is seeing Salman so visibly uninterested. He’s not acting — he’s just there, going through the motions while chaos unfolds around him. There’s no fire in his eyes, no emotion in his voice, and no connection to the scenes. He looks tired — not physically, but creatively. As if he’s given up, and so have the people writing and directing around him.
A Script That Makes No Sense: If the story had any logic, it drowned somewhere around the 10-minute mark. The dialogues? Pure cringe.
Two moments deserve a special mention:
- A police officer claims, “42 cases are registered against Raja Saheb, but no FIR has ever been filed.” This isn’t just bad writing — it’s plain ignorance. Registering a case means an FIR has been filed. Are the filmmakers assuming audiences have no clue how India’s legal system works?
- Then there’s the emotional scene with young Kamarudin (Kamar), whose SPO2 level is clearly shown as 98% — medically a sign of excellent oxygenation. But the dialogue insists his lungs aren’t functioning and he isn’t getting oxygen. Basic biology, anyone?
This is what happens when you try to deliver grand religious and social messaging without grounding it in basic facts. The lectures on upliftment and unity are well-intentioned, sure — but they come across as tone-deaf and laughably out of place.
Rashmika Mandanna – A Wasted Opportunity: I had hopes for Rashmika Mandanna. She’s shown she can act, she has a pan-India appeal, and her casting was a smart move on paper. But here, she is painfully underused and underwhelming. Her performance lacks spark, and the screenplay gives her nothing substantial to work with. Filmmakers must realise: simply casting a South Indian actor doesn’t guarantee box office success in the South. If the content is weak, no face can save it.
Final Thoughts: Sikandar had a message. Maybe even a noble one. But it was delivered so clumsily, so lazily, and with such disrespect for logic and audience intelligence that it lost all meaning. As a Salman Khan fan, it’s painful to say — but this is one of his worst films in recent memory.
And no, camera tricks and untucked shirts won’t save the next one.
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