Silence 2 review: A long, predictable episode of CID that even Manoj Bajpayee's class act can't save

Director: Aban Bharucha Deohans

Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Prachi Desai, Sahil Vaid, Vaquar Shaikh, Dinker Sharma, Parul Gulati, Surbhi Rohra

Where to watch: Zee5

Rating: 2 stars

Whodunnits have been a staple of Indian films for seven decades now. Ever since Guru Dutt introduced crime noir with Baazi, Indian filmmakers have tried to find newer ways to present murder mysteries. In 2021, Aban Bharucha Deohans gave us Bollywood’s first true blue police procedural in Silence. The film starred Manoj Bajpayee and gave a slightly CSI-esque look at a murder investigation, something Indian films have seldom done. In Silence 2, the director brings back Manoj Bajpayee as ACP Avinash, who must now solve a spree killing, a shootout, while time is yet again not on his side.

Silence 2 pales in comparison to its predecessor and that is where the problems begin. The first film was no masterpiece but it was a crisp, engaging murder mystery that introduced the unseen world of forensics, which has been the domain of TV shows like CID and Special Squad. But Silence 2 merely relies on that novelty, which alas, is not even novel anymore. It does not waste any time in trying to build a mystery that is engaging or even contains any suspense. It remains bland, and no amount of novelty can save that.

Silence 2 is the story of the shootout at Night Owl Bar. Ten people have been killed in a shootout and there is one high-profile victim too. Hence, ACP Avinash from the Special Crimes Unit must solve this as the clock runs against him. He is joined by his competent team and as Avinash peels off the layers of this mystery, he realises that the real victim may have been someone else and there is more to the case than it seems.

The biggest problem with Silence 2 is its sheer predictability. The grand mystery is pretty obvious in the first half hour and by the second hour, you are way ahead of the cops, which very unfairly reduced the investigators to bumbling fools. Since the mystery is so transparent, the grand reveal fizzes out, and you are simply frustrated why these smart and savvy cops can’t figure out what has been so obvious for ages now.

The forensic aspect of it all and the investigators’ knowledge of it was refreshing to see last time. But jargon alone can’t elevate a lacklustre film, and that is what Silence 2 ends up as – mediocre with very few redeeming qualities. One of those redeeming things is Manoj Bajpayee. The actor has been handed a difficult task of carrying a film that has not much going. But such is his mastery over his craft that he coasts through the film, even as everything is falling around him. The actor’s measured performance is a treat to watch. But it does little for the film.

The support cast is good too, led by Prachi Desai, Sahil Vaid, and Vaquar Shaikh, who are competent and do their job well. But unlike the last film, they are reduced to very one-dimensional roles with not much to separate them. It is sad that the identities and individualities of the team members don’t come out. The antagonists are cartoonish to say the least. They come across as laughable, which means that their sinister plans do not quite land and appear sinister.

In the end, Silence 2 resembles CID more than it does CSI. It is more amateurish and clunky than slick, which is its biggest undoing. Silence 2 held a lot of promise but is let down by bad execution.