By Jorge Ignacio Castillo

While Hollywood is still trying to figure out Riz Ahmed (often wasted in tentpole films like Jason Bourne and Venom), the British actor/rapper has indie cred to spare. His turns in Nightcrawler and Four Lions were eye-opening, not to mention his Oscar nominated performance in Sound of Metal.

His involvement in Mogul Mowgli goes beyond acting. Ahmed wrote and produced the feature, which showcases his not small musical abilities. The film is limited in scope, but ambitious all the same.

Mogul Mowgli isn’t entirely dissimilar to Sound of Metal. Zed is an up-and-comer hip-hop artist who, ahead of a career-making tour, decides to make a pitstop at the family home in London. His relationship with his parents is cordial, but distant, undercut with Zed’s complicated relationship with his religion.

While a bit of tension hangs in the air, it has nothing on a degenerative condition that manifests at the worst possible moment and threatens to wreck Zed’s big break. Stuck between dream space and reality, Zed is confronted with the limits of his will power, the lasting impact of his religious upbringing and his own misapprehensions regarding his situation.

Ahmed threads the needle between likeable and full of himself brilliantly. Unfortunately, the film leans too much on him and not enough on the plot, even as barebones as this one is. Mogul Mowgli is at its best whenever not taking itself all too seriously (the terrible rapper replacing Zed on the tour is a highlight). Three (out of five) stars.

Mogul Mowgli is now playing.