Actor, writer, director Sonu Sood’s war against cyber crime syndicate has a heavy Hollywood hangover.
Rating: ⭐️💫 (1.5 / 5)
By Mayur Lookhar
“Hum tumme itne chhed karenge ki bhool jaoge ki saans kahan se lein aur paade kahan se,’ Chulbul Pandey had warned Chhedi Singh in Dabangg (2010). And he lived up to his word, punching many holes into his enemy.
Salman Khan was rightly the toast of Dabangg, but it also helped Sonu Sood find a new lease of life as a villain. What is a hero without a worthy villain? Chhedi Singh was one helluva bad guy, but every villain longs to play a hero in an action film. It’s been a long wait for Sood, who created that opportunity himself by writing, acting, and directing Fateh (2025).
After taking plenty of bullets in villainous roles, it was time to punch holes as the action hero. Sood’s a real-life hero, whose benevolence was displayed during Covid-19 when he helped hundreds of migrant labourers reach their home. This unparalleled goodwill also needed to translate onto the screen.
Sood, the writer, conceived the Fateh (2025) story (co-written by Ankur Pajni). We have Fateh Singh (Sood), a righteous man from Moga (Sood’s native town), who has earned the respect of the locals for lending more than a helping hand in tough times. Briefly, one might fear whether Fateh (2025) is a self-patting tale, especially with Sood as the writer, director, and lead actor here.
The larger conflict, though, emerges through a specific troubleshooting mission as Fateh Singh sets his sights on finding the missing Nimrit Kaur (Shiv Jyoti Rajput). This search eventually leads him to Raza (Naseeruddin Shah), the lord of a cyber-crime syndicate. But who is Fateh, really? Nobody knows. He was a member of a covert unit disbanded some time ago. Raza and his crime network soon find out they are dealing with a relentless killing machine.
This war against a cyber-crime mafia holds promise for a new-age action thriller, but the first few action sequences reveal Fateh to have a heavy Hollywood hangover. From the moment the trailer dropped, netizens noted that certain action scenes were reminiscent of films like The Equalizer (2014), John Wick, and even our own Animal (2023). Mind you, a marathon action sequence from Animal was inspired by the Korean film Oldboy (2003).
Another interesting aspect of Fateh is how the makers credited renowned international musicians Hans Zimmer and Loire Cotler for the Call to Life and To the Moon soundtracks, respectively. However, we couldn’t find any credit for Richard Wenk, who wrote The Equalizer (2014). It should be noted, though, that the Denzel Washington film was itself based on Michael Sloan and Richard Lindheim’s CBS spy-action thriller series of the same name. Although we haven’t seen the series, Fateh appears to borrow significantly from Richard Wenk’s film.
Save for the war against the cyber-crime mafia, there is nothing novel about Sonu Sood’s Fateh. It ends up as a cheap copy of The Equalizer.
At 51, Sood is in the best of shape. He is charming as the gentle good Samaritan from Moga. Fateh packs quite a punch in the opening action sequence that ends with our hero bashing over 90 men. Rather surprisingly, he’s flattened in a subsequent low-intensity blast before Sood reveals what led Fateh to this near fatal path. Honestly, from the moment The Equalizer hangover slips in, Fateh hits the self-destruct button. After the early promise, Sonu Sood, the actor ends up being a pale desi version of Washington’s much more intense Robert McCall.
While the Fatehs are like a one-man army, busting a cyber-crime mafia also needs help from a tech mind. It’s here that he finds help from Khushi Sharma (Jacqueline Fernandez). In recent years, the Sri Lankan beauty has made headlines for all the wrong reasons, but as an actor, she remains wanting even after spending over a decade in Bollywood. Young Shiv Jyoti Rajput has screen presence and is appealing to begin with but gets lost in the chaotic script.
Vijay Raaz is a fine actor, but his brutal character, Satya Prakash, merited more meat. The wiry Raaz totally pales in comparison to Marton Csokas’s cold, beast-like character Teddy in The Equalizer.
Veteran Naseeruddin Shah is much admired for his critical views on Hindi cinema, particularly his disdain for mindless action thrillers. Ironically, he’s part of one now, but will Shah judge Fateh by the same yardstick?
The story, screenplay, and direction are poor, though Fateh scores a few brownie points for cinematography and BGM. Sonu Sood’s wish to lead in an action thriller is fulfilled, but it’s not a dream directorial debut for the actor. As the key henchman Chaddha (Akashdeep Sabir) says, “Not every six-footer is Bachchan.” And nor is every Fateh as good as Rob McCall.
