Maalik X Review: Rajkummar Rao 'Shines' In Otherwise 'Dull, Messy' Gangster Drama
Rajkummar Rao's highly-anticipated gangster drama Maalik finally released in theatres today, on July 11, 2025. Fans who flocked to the theatres to watch morning shows of the film have shared their reviews on social media. So far, the film has received mixed reaction on social media. Early reviews of Maalik suggest that while the film has left many netizens unimpressed, Rajkummar Rao's performance emerges as its standout highlight.
Sharing the review of Maalik, one X (formerly Twitter) user wrote, '#MaalikReview: Only watchable for #RajKummarRao's solid performance. The rest is a dull, outdated gangster drama with weak direction and no grip. Sadly, Raj deserves better," while another one wrote, 'Its interval time in #Maalik Same old revenge story situated in 1980s and 1990s. Post interval may remain the same. Let's see!" A third netizen reviewed the film, and wrote, 'MaalikReview ~ DISASTER & MESS! #Maalik is a film whose SCREENPLAY is written in such a way that it will confuse you, bore you, and make you scratch your head for wasting your money ! They lifted many gangster films' STORIES, SCENES, and even DIALOGUES to merge them together and serve this MESS. The 1st half is at least bearable, but the 2nd half goes completely HAYWIRE with unnecessary VIOLENCE and no Connections between Scenes."
#MaalikReview: ⭐️⭐️ Only watchable for #RajKummarRao 's solid performance. The rest is a dull, outdated gangster drama with weak direction and no grip.Sadly, Raj deserves better.
Expected to open with a slow 1.5–2 CrFollow @actor_vivekm89 for updates #Maalik #ManushiChhillar pic.twitter.com/gKnEHAw4Rf
— Vivek Mishra🧢 (@actor_vivekm89) July 11, 2025
MaalikReview ~ DISASTER & MESS!Ratings: ⭐️ ½ #Maalik is a film whose SCREENPLAY is written in such a way that it will confuse you, bore you, and make you scratch your head for wasting your money !
They lifted many gangster films' STORIES, SCENES, and even DIALOGUES to merge…
— Lokesh meena (@Lokeshm124) July 11, 2025
First Half Of #Maalik …."Completely opposite of expectations… Maybe the second half will be better.Actors' performances were good.Full review coming soon…" #maalikreview pic.twitter.com/Vd2fA8U7Uo — Bipin Singh (@bipinsinghreal) July 11, 2025
Its interval time in #Maalik Same old revenge story situated in 1980s and 1990s. Post interval may remain the same.
Let's see!
— Siddharth Chhaya – સિદ્ધાર્થ છાયા 🇮🇳 (@siddtalks) July 11, 2025
#MaalikReview: The Decent Entertainment. 💥Rating: 3*/5 ⭐⭐⭐ #RajkummarRao shines in and as #Maalik in the film, his performance is really electrifying. #ManushiChhillar looks beautiful and did a great job. First half is BOMBARDING but the second half lacks a bit in the… pic.twitter.com/YFZuQyIwvg
— Suryakant Dholakhandi (@maadalaadlahere) July 11, 2025
Meanwhile, another X user found the film enjoyable. '#MaalikReview: The Decent Entertainment. Rating: 3*/5 #RajkummarRao shines in and as #Maalik in the film, his performance is really electrifying. #ManushiChhillar looks beautiful and did a great job. First half is BOMBARDING but the second half lacks a bit in the screenplay and is okayish. Rest of the cast #SaurabhSachdeva, #SaurabhShukla and #ProsenjitChatterjee adds a brilliant spark in the film. Overall, the film is enjoyable. Rajkummar Rao in a never seen before avatar!!!"
About Maalik
Apart from Rajkummar and Manushi, the film also stars Saurabh Shukla and Saurabh Sachdeva in pivotal roles. Maalik is a hard-hitting tale of ambition, power, and survival. Directed by Pulkit, the film marks his first theatrical release. Known for his hard-hitting thrillers and emotionally charged dramas, the film is produced by Kumar Taurani under the Tips Films banner, along with Jay Shewakramani of Northern Lights Films.
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