TEHRAN JOHN RIDES A SUBDUED, BITING THRILLER

Film: Tehran Director: Arun Gopalan Cast: John Abraham, Manushi Chhillar, Neeru Bajwa, Dinker Sharma, Hadi Khanjanpour and Madhurima Tuli Streamer: ZEE5 RATING 3/5

- SHREYAS PANDE

JOHN ABRAHAM, as the man-on-duty, is a sub-genre in Hindi films. Over the years, it has come in varied forms, like the layered, nuanced army officer he plays in Shoojit Sircar's Madras Cafe (2013) or the hyperbolic, masala action star in Satyamev Jayate (2018), delivering dialogues that elevate his sturdy machismo.

From displaying his ever-pumped-up biceps to navigating complex geopolitics with a cerebral spirit, John has done it all with an almost stoic honesty. He carried a similar energy in his last two films, Vedaa (2024) and The Diplomat (2025), playing a sort of saviour in different landscapes and capacities. Vedaa was more earthy, while The Diplomat dealt with Indo-Pak affairs.

With Tehran, John goes to completely unexplored geographies, playing neither a larger-than-life saviour nor a traditional, chest-thumping patriot. He doesn't overpower the story but stays a worthy catalyst. The filmmaking subsumes to a mood; there is no motive to drive an empty spectacle with loud music and fast cuts. This is a slow-burn.

That way, Tehran is not a traditional Independence Day release. It refuses to tap into the same-old emotions with the same-old approach. There is ambition to rise up from the populist storytelling devices with a motive to engage rather than provoke. John doesn't get a slo-mo entry here with an elevating background score. We see him enter the frame rather nonchalantly as he engages with a gangster at a dhaba around Delhi. He plays Rajeev Kumar, a dedicated, empathetic officer of the special cell, who is called in to investigate the bombing of Israeli diplomats in the capital.