Critical response
The film received negative reviews from the critics. [10] [11] [12] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, Tejas holds a score of 10% based on 10 reviews and an average rating of 5/10. [9]
Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave the film a rating of 1 out of 5 and wrote, "Tejas is a film that flies into rough weather from the word go and never manages to find a way out of it. An air combat thriller has never been so frustratingly airy-fairy". [28] The Times of India 's Dhaval Roy gave 3 out 5 stars, writing, "As the story builds up, sequences seem abrupt, and one wishes for a more cohesive screenplay. That being said, things turn thrilling once the main rescue operation begins, and the movie offers some high-octane action scenes". He praised Ranaut for performing "action as effortlessly as emotional scenes". [29] More positive albeit mixed reviews came from Samarth Goyal of Hindustan Times who described Tejas as film that "takes you on a rollercoaster ride through the skies and geopolitics", which "succeeds in creating moments of tension and anticipation". The reviewer labelled the first half as an "an unruly hunk of footage" but credited the film for regaining its composure in the second half where it keeps "maintaining a commendable tone that never veers into loud and jingoistic territory". [30] Lachmi Deb Roy of Firstpost , who gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, appreciated Ranaut and said the film becomes interesting in the second half, but lacks appropriate depth in the research. [31]
Anuj Kumar, reviewing for The Hindu , wrote that the movie is "a sloppy follow-up that neither works as an action film nor manages to sustain the emotional swell". [32] Zinia Bandyopadhyaye of India Today gave the film of 2 stars out of 5 and called it a bumpy ride muddled with jarring inconsistencies. [33] Filmfare concluded, "while Tejas is a valiant attempt towards championing inclusion of women in combat roles, the half-baked nature of the film cushions the impact of its message." [34] Shubhra Gupta panned the film as replete with "a series of eye-roll moments" but praised Ranaut "whose acting abilities shine through even in the weakest scenes". [35] She later included the film as one of the worst films of 2023. [36] Jansatta described the movie in its review to be lacking plot and attempting to thrive on nationalist sentiments. [37]
