Mufasa The Lion King Movie Review: Shah Rukh Khan returns as the righteous leader, Taka to Scar tale is a slow-burn

Mufasa: The Lion King has been released worldwide, giving an insight into the life of a king, who was an outsider and tagged as 'awara' but was the most deserving one to claim the throne. The prequel to the 2019 film, 'The Lion King', Mufasa deals with the story of Mufasa and the royal blood, Taka. While the 2019 release had Aryan Khan making his debut as the voice of Simba, the 2024 release has Shah Rukh Khan's younger son, Abram, enter the entertainment industry as Mufasa cub's voice, while the superstar primes as Mufasa in each and every scene. While the Hollywood film has a typical old-school Bollywood touch this time, it fails to touch our hearts and re-create the same magic.

Story

'Mufasa: The Lion King' begins with Rafiki entertaining Kiara, Simba's daughter, with her grandfather's story. While the little seems to be invested in the story of Mufasa to the core, Timon and Pumbaa, being Timon and Pumbaa, have their moments of non-stop fun and senseless talks. But you get to miss the real them, as there's not much of them in the prequel compared to The Lion King, understandably though. Rafiki, being the 'daddu' of Kiara, narrates the story of Mufasa, Taka, their common love, Sarabi, and his involvement in their story. 

It all begins with Mufasa, separating from his parents at a young age and having a hard time forgetting them. Later he meets Taka and his mother, Afia, who cares for both equally and treats Mufasa no less than her son. Afia should also be credited for making Mufasa who he was: strong, courageous, righteous, and better than the rest. Sadly, Mufasa doesn't get a happy end with her, as well as Kiros vows to kill Taka and him. Given the right motivation to run and save themselves, both brothers run towards Pride Land ('Gaurav Bhoomi) for a better life, while Kiros is on a witch hunt. However, amid all this, they meet Sarabi and Zazu. While in a typical Bollywood style, Taka falls for Sarabi, but Sarabi falls for Mufasa, and a female becomes the major reason behind the rift between the two brothers. Yes! Typical and cliche. The second half of the film questions several answers, like how does Taka betray Mufasa because of Sarabi, can the righteous leader same himself and the other from Kiros and how does the royal blood Taka turn into Scar?

Direction and Writing

In a time when several film franchises have turned into money-making machines with sequels, Hollywood filmmaker Barry Jenkins takes an alternative route as he's back with a prequel here. However, fate remains the same as 'Mufasa: The Lion King' fails to connect with its audiences as it did back in 2019. There are several gaps that the filmmaker has failed to fill up. Moreover, they also did Taka wrong, that too, big time. His journey from the 'future king' to traitor Scar has not been justified well in the film. Moreover, the lengthy tale had too much to tell, but somehow it misses a lot of points in the way. People expecting some good animal-to-animal action sequences like the first film will also be disappointed. But there are several high points in 'Mufasa: The Lion King' that need to be appreciated, like its music, good dialogue, beautiful scenic beauty, clap-worthy VFX, and perfect Hindi dubbing. 

Hindi Dubbing

Shah Rukh Khan as Mufasa is great! The actor not only makes you feel for the character but gives the audience several opportunities to think of him as SRK as well. And why not? They have so much in common: an outsider who made it big in a competitive world, a leader who paved the way for others, and a family man who is known for his values. On the other hand, Abram is cute while Aryan has less of Simba to explore. Makarand Deshpande as Rafiki is perfect, and while you'll miss Asrani as Zazu, Sanjay Mishra and Shreyas as Pumbaa and Timon fill in the gaps. But the one that wins you over is Meiyang Chang as Taka. He not only dwells well with SRK but also remains lovable till the end.  

Verdict

'Mufasa: The Lion King' is a fine one-time watch. The film gives a beautiful insight into the basics of life and makes you live your childhood once again. Moreover, knowing the childhood of our OG king is a good experience in itself. Bollywood lovers will also like the film as it has a Hindi movie touch to it. Also, where else do we get to hear Shaan sing for Shah Rukh's character in today's time? Leaving a few demerits, 'Mufasa: The Lion King' is a fine cinematic experience and deserves 2.5 stars.