It’s been an eventful weekend for Indian cricket as
the Women booked their spot in the final four of the T20 WC while the Men
tasted their first series defeat in the World Test Championship. At the same time,
life limped back to normalcy in the Capital as the violent agitation that
rocked the very foundation of the nation finally ceased to everyone’s relief.
Well I will talk about that topic on my FB page some other time. This week also
saw the release of Anubhav Sinha’s “Thappad” which focused on domestic violence
but not quite in the manner that most of us would have expected. Even if one
believes that he is liberal, there are situations in the movie that would make
many of us introspect.
Amrita (Taapsee Pannu) is a sprightly young
housewife who catered to the needs of her husband, Vikram (Pavail Gulati)
& mother in law (Tanvi Azmi) with exuberance.
They were contemplating a move to UK as Vikram’s company gave him the hint that
they intended to make him charge of operations over there. In anticipation of
the promotion, he throws a party for his friends & family. However, it
ended on a sour taste as his senior colleague informed him that he was not
considered for the position. As expected, it didn’t go down well with Vikram
who in a fit of fury slaps Amrita who was trying to pull him away from a
physical confrontation with his colleague. Incidentally, that one slap changed
their life forever & how that happens is what the movie talks about.
With an enviable track record in recent times with
movies like “Mulk” & “Article 15”, Anubhav Sinha is someone who doesn’t
need any introduction. In the company of Mrunmayee Lagoo, he has scripted yet
another socially relevant topic that doesn’t get focused upon as much as it
should. As per the National Family Health Survey (NHFS-4) conducted by the
Union Health Ministry, about 27% per cent of women have experienced physical
violence since the age of 15 in India. The main emphasis in the story is that
even a single slap is one too many & wives ought not to be taken for granted
irrespective of whether it was done in the heat of the moment or even if the
person is a good guy in general. Anubhav showcases the relation among couples across
different age groups & strata of society in a convincing manner. It feels
rather monotonous at times since hardly anything seems to happen with Amrita
sulking & Vikram refusing to stitch a proper sentence expressing his sincere apology
for a significant amount of time. But if you invest yourself into the
protagonist’s mindset, then you would realize that her behaviour does make
sense.
First & foremost, kudos to Anubhav for his apt
choice of artists as they have done utmost justice to their roles. Taapsee
Pannu as expected gave a fine performance though I felt Pavail Gulai’s role was
more challenging. He needed to find a balance whereby he shows his arrogance
yet make people support him & in that sense, he has done a good job.
Equally impressive were Tanvi, Kumud Mishra, Ratna Pathak & Dia Mirza who
did their parts aptly.
Verdict: The main point that the movie focuses upon
is the mindset that we have in our nation regarding the pre-conceived notion
about the type of behavior that is expected from a female. She has to take things
in her stride & make the relationship work in a family even if it means
that she has taken a backward step in her career or interests. It’s basically a
sense of entitlement that the Indian society gives to the males, though that
trend is definitely changing in many of the families. It might not be a time
pass feel good movie but rather it makes us think as to whether we also endorse
our flawed social structure subconsciously. In short, do watch it!!!
Rating: 3.25/5
Regards...Ben
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