Gandhari Film Review: In Gandhari, a desperate mother fights against all odds (literally) to find her kidnapped daughter on a family holiday. The premise is powerful and extremely important, focusing on the trafficking of young girls and the heartbreak and desperation that a mother goes through in such a situation. The film’s initial run is quite engaging, but it seems to lose sight of it the more it moves forward.
Set in a fictional town of Joypurra, the film combines action, mystery and social commentary while following Bani as she refuses to bow down to social pressures and accept injustice. With the added disadvantage of losing her sight, the film is a jumbled mess of sorts, with a runtime far too long to make an impact.
The movie stars Taapsee Pannu, Ishwak Singh, Mita Vashisht, Swastika Mukherjee, Chhaya Kadam, Jatin Sarna, Prashant Narayanan, Chandan Roy, Vishwanath Chatterjee, and Priti Shroff. The film is directed by Devashish Makhija and written by Kanika Dhillon.
Gandhari Film Review
The Film Has a Strong Emotional Hook
As mentioned earlier, Gandhari has a strong emotional hook that starts the film off. While we have watched stories about trafficking, the panic of losing your child while in the loo and then losing your sight while running after the perpetrator is terrifying and traumatic. The desperate situations pile on top of one another as the movie goes on, with Bani finding herself facing more and more odds.
The idea of a normal woman fighting against the justice system is a moving watch in and of itself, and so the emotional hook will leave anyone on edge. Unfortunately, that’s where the film’s novelty ends because emotions can only propel the mystery so far. For some reason, the film then turns into a spy thriller, with Bani becoming some sort of blind superwoman who can do anything. While I agree that desperate times call for desperate measures, it’s hard to accept that a woman who lost her eyesight a month ago can jump in the air and fight off enemies left, right and centre within days.
The unbelievable aspect doesn’t end there, as the more we watch the film, the more convoluted it becomes. Of course, this is a story that we have watched previously, and the number of people associated with young girls being trafficked is definitely a harrowing reality, but the way this is shown in the film makes it seem like these are Disney villains who are all about the style and cackling laughter. It’s unbelievable after a while.
Taapsee Pannu Takes on Another Physically Demanding Role
Regardless of the unbelievable story, Taapsee Pannu is fantastic as Bani as she swings, falls, punches and fights against all odds after losing her sight. She’s a desperate mother, and it shows, as she tries to piece together all the clues to get her daughter back. Of course, she has plot armour considering she’s the protagonist, but Pannu’s performance is a force to be reckoned with. Ishwak Singh is great as well, although everyone other than Pannu is forgettable and unexplored. Also, both Pannu and Singh are terrible with their Bengali, and I am unsure why they were made to speak the language so poorly.
An Attempt to Create Something More Than a Revenge Story
Apart from the central premise, Gandhari also features folklore to push the narrative of a mother who cuts all bonds to get to her daughter. She takes on the guise of a being higher than herself on her path to revenge, becoming someone who ends injustice. Adding to that, it draws on the cultural traditions of Bahurupiya, highlighting the shifting identities of those she thought she knew. In the end, when she learns that nothing is as it seems, it makes us see Bani’s world in a different light. Unfortunately, that element doesn’t get time to be explored as there’s just so much the film tries to tackle at once.
At 116 minutes, Gandhari goes on for far too long and leaves viewers confused regarding what is happening. While it desperately tries to introduce new twists at every given opportunity, the film somehow forgets to create a stable world at first before diving into the twists. And speaking of that, the twists are simply too many. After a while, it’s hard to keep track of. It’s as if everything is some conspiracy, which makes the film feel less serious and more forced.
Final Verdict
Overall, Gandhari tested my patience. While its social commentary is important, the way it goes about showcasing all of it seems amusing after a while. Overall, this one’s a disappointment in my book.
Gandhari is streaming right now on Netflix. What did you think of the Netflix film? Let us know in the comments below!
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