But first things first - the plot (or lack thereof since it has been lifted from several Hollywood flicks) concerns Aryan/’A', the mysterious international thief who has not been identified till date. With the help of a local cop Jay Dixit & his sidekick Ali, ACP Shonali (Bipasha) is soon hot on the slippery thief’s heels who is good with disguises and gizmos. Although Aryan gives Jay Dixit & his team the slip, it only strengthens the local cop’s resolve, and soon we are on a chase that takes us from the streets of Mumbai to the beaches of Rio with a couple of well executed stunts to whet our appetite. In between all the chase, Aryan also falls for the bewitching charms of a copycat thief, Sunehri, who wants to pair up with the ace thief at any cost. And that in a nutty shell is what D2’s mostly about.

Now the performers - and I usually don’t say this about the male actors - Hritik Roshan, as Aryan, simply looks like a chunk of hunk. He has been framed so glamourously, it’s a sin. Women have been found to be drooling all over themselves, while their male escorts are sulking in low self-esteem. Roshan not only delivers in looks, but also enacts his role with conviction. Whatever he wears, he turns it into a fashion statement, and his dancing skills are simply overwhelming. He moves with the grace of a Cheetah, and sports a chiselled visage worthy of a Greek God.

In comparison to Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan fares very badly in his reprised role as Inspector Jay Dixit. He not only looks like a homeless person, but his wardrobe has gone from bad to worst. Role-wise, he simply offers a continous scowl and a sour-mood to go along with it.

As Ali, Uday Chopra, though limited in his screen presence, manages to entertain as the buffoonish foil to Jay’s humourless cop. As his love interest, Bipasha Basu (in twin roles of Shonali & her sister) has limited footage, and provides oomph and sex-appeal.

And finally, Aishwarya Rai. Cast as the copycat thief Sunehri, she and Hritik make a good pair but fall short of major steam. Her performance is strictly okay and gets overshadowed by her beauty and glamour.

Director Sanjay Gadhavi has nothing to worry from this review, since his film has already been declared a huge hit back home. But his handling of the film leaves a lot to be desired. He was more at home with Dhoom, but in D2, his flourishes are erratic at best - too many slo-mos, not enough juice and major slackening of the pace post-interval leaves a discerning viewer visibly restless. The holes in the plot don’t help either.

What is there to like? Hritik, babes in bikinis, Rio De Janeiro and a few well executed action sequences.

Anything else to criticize? Music sucks big time. Pritam simply rehashes his tunes from the first outing. Only tune that retains it’s hum-factor is ‘Crazy Kiya Re’, and visually it’d be ‘Dhoom Again’ and ‘Touch Me’.

Verdict - Watch it if you are a Hritik/Aishwarya die-hard fan, else you ain’t missing much.

DURATION: 151 Mins.
CAST: Hritik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai, Abhishek Bachchan, Uday Chopra
DIRECTOR: Sanjay Gadhavi.