It’s really exciting to see that finally, we have found a genuine champion director for thrillers in Bollywood. Welcome back, Sujoy Ghosh. After Kahaani 1, Ahalya (short film), Kahaani2, and Te3n (as producer) comes another power-packed film that is all about the intricate story-telling of a series of incidents that connect to a larger plot, with a final reveal of the hold-your-breath-mystery at the end.
Sujoy, this is clearly your calling. And hope you’re able to explore this genre to its fullest over the coming years. There are many stories waiting to be told and there is unlimited potential, which has hardly been tapped in Hindi cinema. How many really good Bollywood thrillers can you really think of?
The entire story happens around a 3-hour conversation between the accused, Naina Sethi (Taapsee Pannu) and her newly appointed lawyer, Badal Gupta (Amitabh Bachchan). Naina is accused of murdering her extra-marital lover and Badal (who has never lost a case in his life) wants to know the whole real story so that he could save her before a new witness is presented to the police. Naina recounts the series of events that have led her to be arrested and through many counter-questions from Badal, we learn new reveals, twists and turns in the flash-back, making us question what really happened, and furiously guessing who did it, and why, and how!
Amitabh Bachchan rocks as always, playing Badal to the tee. As always, he acts with what he does and acts with what he doesn’t. His dialogues are as impactful, as his silences. It is amazing to see how his expressions speak to you, sometimes giving you another message than what he is saying with his mouth, and you understand as if it’s a secret between him and you. He is easily the greatest actor of our time and he reminds you, again and again. Hats off!
Taapse Pannu, is a great match too. She is such a discovery of the last few years. From Pink to Mulk, to Manmarziyan (see my review https://books-booze-boxoffice.blogspot.com/2018/09/manmarziyan-film-review.html) to #Badla, she has given consistently good performances. She has great screen presence and is a delight to watch. She lights up the screen and you always walk out, wanting more of her. Her chemistry with Amitabh Bachchan, too, is great in the film, both when they get along and especially when they don’t.
It is interesting to see that after some really good mystery thriller movies in the 1960s-70s, we lost the knack of telling these stories in Bollywood. Remember Gumnaam (1965), Teesri Manzil (1966), Jewel Thief (1967), Ittefaq (1969) Dhund (1973) among others. But, one can understand why. It’s not easy to tell a crime thriller mystery story.
A good crime thriller firstly needs a strong building of characters and their in-depth psychology, that will explain why different people in the plot behaved in a certain way. That’s where the motive for the main event (murder) comes, that’s what triggers the entire plot, and the sequence of events. Action of certain characters. And reaction by the others.
Then, it’s how the story is told to the audience, in a way that not only keeps them engaged (on the edge-of-their-seat), but also makes them want to guess the grand reveal. In most movies, we are passively receiving the entertainment being given to us, but the active participation of the audience is what makes a murder mystery different from all other genres. This storytelling is almost like a duel between the audience and the movie-maker. The game of ‘who is more clever’. The movie grips you, teases you and even tries to confuse you, but if you’re looking carefully, there are enough clues to guess. And the final result of this joust is revealed at the end, when you either win (“I told you so, I guessed it”) or lose (“wow, didn’t see that coming”). And you walk out of the movie hall, playing back all the events in the story again to see how it all fits, in hindsight.
But, the interesting thing is this. Despite the result, the movie always wins, because if you guessed it, you feel under-whelmed and if you didn’t, you feel stupid! (If you want to know, I was in the former category)
And this is why what Sujoy has achieved is no mean feat. He has managed to create a murder mystery crime thriller that stays true to form. Next time, dream bigger Sujoy. Make it more intricate. Go deeper and higher. May you discover the Agatha Christie in you!
A classic crime thriller, from a really talented director, with brilliant performances from one of the best actors of our time. What more can we ask for?
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