Dhamaal 4 Movie Review: Does Ajay Devgn’s Treasure Hunt Comedy Strike Gold or Just Recycle Old Jokes?
Ajay Devgn, Arshad Warsi, Riteish Deshmukh and the gang are back on another madcap treasure hunt — but does the fourth outing still deliver the laughs, or has the franchise finally run out of tricks?
Seventeen years after a group of squabbling misfits first went chasing hidden money in Dhamaal, director Indra Kumar has brought the franchise back for a fourth round of chaos. Dhamaal 4 hit theatres on July 10, 2026, reuniting the franchise’s core trio — Ajay Devgn, Arshad Warsi, and Riteish Deshmukh — alongside Jaaved Jaaferi, Ravi Kishan, Sanjay Mishra, and a fresh set of faces. The big question on every fan’s mind: is this comeback worth the ticket price, or is it running on nostalgia fumes?
Here’s our full breakdown of the story, performances, and what critics across the industry are saying.
What is Dhamaal 4 About?
The plot sticks to the franchise’s tried-and-tested blueprint: greed, chaos, and a treasure nobody can quite get their hands on. This time, Guddu (Ajay Devgn), who runs an antique store with his friend Johnny (Sanjay Mishra), stumbles onto a lead about a treasure buried by a legendary pirate on a remote jungle island. The only man who knows its exact location, Prithvi (Upendra Limaye), is being hunted by a rival pirate named Adhoora (Ravi Kishan) — and a burnt map means Prithvi is the sole keeper of the secret.
What follows is a frantic race across land, sea, and jungle, with Guddu’s crew — including Aadi (Arshad Warsi), Manav (Jaaved Jaaferi), and Lallan (Riteish Deshmukh) — colliding, teaming up, and double-crossing each other in pursuit of the same fortune. Add in Guddu’s girlfriend Aaliya (Esha Gupta) and her two kids getting swept into the madness, and you’ve got the familiar Dhamaal cocktail of slapstick, sibling-style rivalry, and situational comedy.
It’s a formula that worked in 2007’s original and 2019’s Total Dhamaal — and the film clearly bets on that same nostalgia to carry it through.
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Performances: The Old Gang Still Has Chemistry
If there’s one thing critics agree on, it’s that the ensemble cast still knows how to play off each other. Ajay Devgn slips comfortably back into comic mode, and Arshad Warsi and Jaaved Jaaferi emerge as clear standouts, reportedly getting the meatiest and funniest moments in the film — including a few scenes where their comic timing tips into genuine emotional beats. Riteish Deshmukh, a franchise veteran at this kind of chaos, delivers a solid, practiced performance.
Among the newer additions, Sanjeeda Shaikh puts in a competent turn, while Anjali Anand reportedly steals scenes with a warm, likeable performance. Ravi Kishan and Upendra Limaye fit their pirate-world roles well, and the child actors add a dose of cuteness to the family dynamic. Esha Gupta, in a more limited special appearance, does what’s asked of her without much room to stretch.
Music and Technical Elements
Unlike some of its predecessors, Dhamaal 4 keeps its soundtrack light — there’s just one full song featured in the narrative, which has a catchy, foot-tapping energy, alongside two more tracks played out over the end credits. A reworked version of the Spanish anthem “Bella Ciao” also makes a surprise appearance, adding an unexpected global flavor to the soundtrack. Amar Mohile’s background score does its job of matching the film’s zany tone without overshadowing the on-screen antics.
What’s Working — And What Isn’t
The film’s biggest strength is its old-school, uncomplicated storytelling. Indra Kumar keeps things simple enough for the whole family to follow, and the humor stays clean throughout, which is likely to please parents looking for kid-friendly entertainment during the holidays. A handful of set pieces — like a group rescue attempt aboard a ship and a character faking an injury to win someone over — land well and provide genuine laughs.
However, the pacing takes a hit right after the characters are introduced, with energy dipping until the various groups finally converge near the film’s climax. A supernatural detour involving a ghost sequence reportedly falls flat, generating more confusion than comedy. And in a more pointed criticism, some reviewers flagged a wrestling-match gag involving body-shaming and outdated stereotypes as a tone-deaf misstep that feels out of place in an otherwise family-friendly film.
The most common complaint, though, is familiarity. Dhamaal 4 follows almost the exact same structural template as its predecessors — a treasure, a race, a reveal — leaving little room for surprises. Viewers who’ve seen the earlier films may find themselves predicting plot turns well before they arrive.
What the Critics Are Saying
Reactions to Dhamaal 4 have been notably divided:
- Some reviewers appreciated its clean, family-oriented humor and nostalgic charm, awarding it a moderate, above-average rating and calling it a decent watch for families and children despite its flaws.
- Others were far harsher, describing the comedy as forced and overly explained, with punchlines repeated until there’s nothing left for the audience to discover on their own.
- A few critics went further, calling the jokes largely unfunny and the film’s heavy use of CGI, including an avalanche sequence, more distracting than impressive.
- One review summed up the fatigue many felt: for a film built entirely around the word “Dhamaal” (meaning ruckus or chaos), there’s surprisingly little genuine fun to be found, with the story, music, and comic style all feeling recycled from earlier entries.
On the more enthusiastic end, some viewers found the situational humor to be a genuine strength, even while admitting the constant chaos can become a bit exhausting by the film’s end.
Final Verdict: Should You Watch Dhamaal 4?
Dhamaal 4 is very much a film that will divide audiences along generational and expectation lines. If you’re a longtime fan of the franchise looking for harmless, family-friendly comedy to enjoy over a holiday weekend, there’s enough situational humor and cast chemistry to make it a passable watch — especially for younger viewers. But if you’re hoping for a genuine evolution of the franchise, sharper writing, or fresh comic ideas, you may walk away feeling like you’ve seen this exact treasure hunt before.
With the film already teasing a fifth installment, it’s clear the makers are betting on the Dhamaal name itself to keep pulling audiences in. Whether that bet pays off at the box office remains to be seen — but as a piece of comfort-food comedy, Dhamaal 4 delivers exactly what it promises: familiar faces, familiar jokes, and a familiar treasure hunt.
Rating: 2.5/5 — A nostalgic but uneven entry that coasts on its cast’s chemistry more than its script.
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