Detective Sherdil Movie Review: A confused Diljit Dosanjh in a dull murder-mystery

If someone has really dominated public memory in recent years, it’s Diljit Dosanjh. The lucidity in his voice creates earworms out of simple tunes; not to mention his meditative swagger which makes him an instantly likeable persona. Diljit exhibits a rooted charm off-screen. In his music videos, however, he is flamboyant, full of his desi-meets-videsi vibe. Sherdil could have aptly been a title of one of his songs too. The one where the lyrics champion him as a brave heart as he moves around styled in an over-the-top wardrobe. Sherdil would have been a hit song; I can already hear its hook in my head. But when it is made into a detective film, it loses steam.

Starring: Boman Irani, Ratna Pathak Shah, Chunky Panday, Sumeet Vyas, Banita Sandhu, and Kashmira Irani

Directed by: Ravi Chhabriya

Streamer: ZEE5

The film begins with flair as we see Diljit introducing his character, wearing a black jacket with the face of a lion on his back. He poses and looks at the camera, like it’s just another music video. Only, it is not. An energetic rap song places Sherdil to be greater than the likes of Sherlock Holmes and Byomkesh Bakshi, the popular fictional detectives, known for their sharp deduction skills. Sherdil, however, is not as serious. Neither is he the accidental genius like Johnny English. He is a character stuck somewhere in the middle; not too serious, not too playful but ambiguous all along. There is little to his traits than the innocent smile which he puts on as a common reaction to everything. When he is not doing that, he is seen playing a catchy tune on his golden coloured harmonica. Diljit doesn’t have to do much to embody the character. The makers don’t even capitalise on his Punjabi humour but instead give him more Hindi and English dialogues. The actor-singer is visibly confused when he says these lines without any touch of being self-aware.

Even the case that he solves is nothing out of the ordinary. A mighty businessman, Pankaj Bhatti (Boman Irani) is murdered in the middle of a secluded road, riddled with bullets in his own car. His driver has disappeared and so has Purvak, the boyfriend of Pankaj’s hearing and speech-impaired daughter, Shanti. It is a money dispute as Pankaj’s son, Angad (Sumit Vyas) and his wife, Rajeshvari (Ratna Pathak Shah), eye his fortune.

It is a rather straightforward mystery. There is an obvious lack of thrill in the story which is made up for by over-stylisation in the filmmaking. Director Ravi Chhabriya has also edited the film and he makes himself seen in every cut and transition. Scenes dissolve into one another, nights turn into days through match cuts and there’s an eclectic mix of electronic music heard through it all. None of it is enough to put you back in action. The film wants to be slick and quirky but doesn’t go beyond surface-level embellishments. If the story dulls you out, the filmmaking tires you over.

Diljit’s voiceover adds a certain spark but it’s not as consistently placed. The film, which is named after the detective, becomes more about the case and less about him. His presence is coincidental; it could have very well been any other detective and the film would have still been the same. Sherdil doesn’t have even an iota of charm as Diljit, the global star. He falls flat in most of the scenes majorly due to a confused treatment. None of the other actors stand out too, be it Boman or Ratna, who merely serve the beats of the story without any extravagance.

Detective Sherdil would have worked if Diljit wasn’t so presumably focused. Where he moonlighted as a Punjabi musician in the underground scene in Europe, getting street info on the get-go. Where he was a musical genius and a reluctant detective. His no-nonsense partner, Natasha (Diana Penty), may have been a hater of his taste and a silent admirer of his being. And it would have had a trace of a new Diljit Dosanjh banger in the same vein as Born to shine, Lover, G.O.A.T. These are all songs that made him a dazzling star. While this is a film that turns him into a dwarf planet: distant, indifferent and easily forgettable.