Jailer 2 first reviews: Rajinikanth brings the whistles as Tiger Pandian, Hrithik Roshan makes a splash

Three years after Jailer turned a retired prison officer into a mass-cinema icon, Tiger Muthuvel Pandian returned to screens today. The first-day-first-show crowd has spoken, and they’re split right down the middle. It’s a whistle-worthy blockbuster to some and a sequel that runs out of steam to others. Then there’s the Hrithik Roshan cameo, which turned out to be the most debated two minutes of the film.

Team blockbuster: 'A feast for every Thalaivar fan'

For the faithful, there’s nothing to discuss. One fan couldn’t contain the excitement, calling it a must-watch three times over, a blockbuster, and a feast for every Thalaivar fan, with a row of fire emojis to match.

That’s the Rajinikanth effect. When the superstar walks on screen with Anirudh’s background score behind him, plot problems tend to fade. For a big part of the audience, Jailer 2 delivers exactly what it promised.

Team 'doesn’t live up to Jailer': Strong start, shaky finish

Not everyone left the theatre dancing. X user Sangeeth (@mr_sangeeth) gave one of the more balanced takes of the morning. He liked the opening, with good comedy and a neat first half, but felt the second half slid into average territory, with a dull screenplay that sapped the momentum. His conclusion: an average film that doesn’t match the original.

This is the trap every sequel walks into. The first Jailer set the bar high, with a tight revenge story, a menacing villain, and cameos so well timed that fans still replay them. Matching that is hard. Topping it is harder.

The Hrithik question

No cameo carried more expectations than Hrithik Roshan’s, and for good reason. Back in 1986, a young Hrithik made his acting debut in Bhagwaan Dada playing Rajinikanth’s foster son. Forty years later, he’s back beside his old screen father as a full-grown action star. Fans spent weeks freezing trailer frames, trying to work out whether the sleek figure in a corridor was him.

The payoff has left some viewers cold. One viewer, calling it their genuine review, said Hrithik isn’t looking good in the cameo, and asked why he seemed to be channelling a Salman Khan style instead of being himself. Others were thrilled and called it 'peak aura farming'.

That’s a pointed critique. Hrithik has spent 25 years building his own screen identity: the dancer, the Greek-god physique, the brooding intensity of War. Seeing him in a swagger borrowed from another star clearly struck a nerve with at least part of his fanbase. Others online have cheered the entry, so this one is far from settled. But “Hrithik played someone else’s style” is a debate that will run for days.