Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai (23 May 2023)

 

Genre: Courtroom-Drama

Channel: ZEE5

Language: Hindi

Duration: 132 minutes

Writer: Deepak Kingrani

Director: Apoorv Singh Karki

Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Surya Mohan Kulshrestha, Vipin Sharma, Adrija Sinha, Kaustav Sinha

Music: Sangeet-Siddharth Roy

Editing: Sumeet Kotian

Cinematography: Arjun Kukreti

Introduction:

Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai is a courtroom-drama pulled off effortlessly and effectively by Manoj Bajpayee, the lead artist. 

Plot:

Advocate P. C. Solanki (Manoj Bajpayee) fights a solitary battle for 5 years against an uber rich, influential and highly revered godman (Surya Mohan Kulshrestha), so as to get the rightful justice to minor Nu (Adrija Sinha) wronged (read violated) by him.

As the battle advances from Session Court to High Court and finally Supreme Court, goonism is in full play by the godman's son and team, who resort to intimidation and even killing of witnesses. 

They even try to intimidate and bribe Solanki with a mammoth amount of rupees twenty crore!!

But Solanki manages to stay above greed, intimidation & fear and remains unpurturbed on his path of justice till he gives the case an examplary closure. 

Analysis:

The movie scores high on multiple grounds. 

It has a powerful script with concise screenplay. Not a single frame is lost on unnecessary built up or cheap thrill. 

The direction is quite intelligent and thoughtful. 

Violation of a minor girl and any sort of vibration around relegion or relegious gurus are two of the most sensitive matters and both form the crux of the depicted investigations and arguments in the movie. 

But Apoorv Singh Karki, the director has ably managed to maintain the required dignity & empathy in the scenes concerning Nu and he has kept the arguments against the godman quite logical and completely within the dictum of the Indian law & justice. 

Arjun Kukreti, the cinematographer has not only well captured the iconic bird's eye views of Jodhpur, the Blue City and it's crowded lanes, but he has also captured the court scenes in assorted well conceived angles, thereby making them more effective and engaging. 

Manoj Bajpayee has again surprised with an altogether new style of character portrayal. He is so good and thorough that at times you feel that he is not acting at all but just conversing. 

Watch out for his  scenes when twice big shot national level lawyers with star power and intimidating personalities visit the courts to get bail for the godmen. 

Just notice how Manoj Bajpayee expresses his awe & inspiration for them, how he is puts forward his statements against them while being completely intimidated by them and still how thoroughly he does his job with full determination!! 

Also, watch out for his closing statement at the end of the court case, wherein he uses relegion itself as the weapon to stab the sheer misdeed performed by the relegious guru. Full marks to Deepak Kingrani, the writer for writing this scene. 

All the other actors have also performed well. The editing is good. 

Conclusion:

It's an engaging and quite well made movie on an extremely sensitive topic sans any propaganda or scandalous depiction. 

The heart of the movie is in the right place. Do watch it. 

Saas, Bahu aur Flamingo (5 May 2023)

 

Genre: Crime Drama Thriller

Channel: Disney+ Hotstar

Language: Hindi

Season: 1

No. of Episodes: 8

Running Time: 40-55 minutes

Writer: Saurav Dey, Karan Vyas, Nandini Gupta, Aman Mannan

Director: Homi Adajania

Cast: Dimple Kapadia, Naseeruddin Shah, Radhika Madan, Isha Talwar, Angira Dhar, Deepak Dobriyal, Monica Dogra, Ashish Verma, Varun Mitra, Udit Arora, Jimit Trivedi, Vipin Shar

Introduction:

The storyline is set in an imaginative town Hastipur, located in the parched and arid land of north-western India, with a heavy influence of Gujarat-Rajasthan-Haryana belt.

Plot:

Rani Baa's (Dimple Kapadia) 'Rani Co-operative’ that employs an array of shunned women and exports a wide range of handicrafts and medicinal herbs is actually a cover for her well built and well hidden cocaine trade which she runs alongwith her daughter, two daughters-in-law, one adopted son and other cohorts. 

'Flamingo' is their high demand signature product, whose adultered (by a rival) version puts a politician's son in coma and resultantly catches the attention of anti-narcotics cell. 

Alongside, a dead-eyed rival named ‘Munk’ (Deepak Dobriyal) is out with full force and strategies to overthrow Rani Baa and usurp her empire. 

Analysis:

It's fascinating to see matriarchy in a narcotics centric rustic setting in full bloom, be it - shooting, hand-to-hand combat, love, sexual pursuits both without and post marriage, display of traditions in home arena and shrewd & ruthless dealings outside, liaisons with politicians and police and best of all - total secrecy from menfolk at home!! 

Homi Adajania has nailed this make believe world.

Ethnic and fusion costumes, makeup, ancient tattoos, ethnic ornaments are bang on with intricate detailing. 

The production design in totality is quite creative and detailed.

Everyone has acted well. But Dimple Kapadia in the helluva new godmother like avatar with quadrupled acting talent and confidence has outshone everybody. 

Conclusion:

Do watch the webseries for it's innovative & interesting tweak in age old screenplay, oodles of creativity and brilliant acting by most of the star cast. 

Kathal: A Jackfruit Mystery (19 May 2023)

 

Channel: Netflix

Genre: Satire Comedy Drama

Duration: 115 minutes

Producer: Shobha Kapoor, Ekta Kapoor, Guneet Monga, Achin Jain

Director: Yashowardhan Mishra

It's a light hearted fun film made with an array of both time tested and new impactful artists. 

It's a film with enough social messages, some are imparted strongly while some are just hinted upon. 

Apart from the lead trio - Sanya Malhotra, Anant V Joshi and Neha Saraf, the remaining cast comprises of - Vijay Raaz, Rajpal Yadav, Raghubir Yadav and Brijendra Kala. 

It goes without saying that each of them has served their purpose quite well. 

Sanya just lights up the screen with her toothy grin and passive comic display. 

Raghubir Yadav's comic take on an entrapped girl trafficker needs to be seen to be believed. 

The film primarily focuses on the urgent need of finding and safeguarding missing girls rather than employing the country's police force on ridiculous whims of the politicians, but alongside it also hints upon the disparity of caste system, resistance to accept the clout of lady officers both on job and at home, the media circus and last but not the least the labelling of outgoing and free spirited girls as wayward and thus deserving of mal treatment by anti socials. 

Overall, it's a nice time-pass movie.