Meghna Gulzar's Talvar tells us the story of one of the most disturbing murder stories of our times. We all have followed this horrific story in the media, we all have seen the flip-flops done by the investigating department and we all have felt there was something fishy about all of it. So Meghna has the difficult task of recreating the true events and presenting them in the most unbiased way possible. Was it a case of honour killing, or was it a crime of passion? The team says "We are not taking sides... You make your own conclusions!" And that is where the problem of the film lies...
Meghna takes you through 3 different angles of the same story and they all seem plausible (though not logical) as you take the journey along with her. But even though Meghna claims to be unbiased, she surely implies one theory was right. By focussing on the incompetencies of the police department and the investigating officers, she makes it clear that their analysis is wrong ( which it was!). Additionally, the film shows 2 CDI ( read CBI) teams investigating the same crime - 1) By Irrfan Khan, who goes about the investigation in a completely unbiased way and 2) By Atul Kumar , who decides that the parents are guilty and then goes about proving it! So while the team tries to make it unbiased, it clearly is. If they truly wanted to make it unbiased, they would have made the other officer a little more stable and Irrfan, a little more biased.
It's this inherent confusion in Vishal Bharadwaj's mind that makes the sword of justice blunt and the impact low. While it's disturbing to see the way the investigations were carried out, the impact is lost by making the police department almost comically incompetent ( which it unfortunately is!). Also, the film could have been a little shorter. But enough about the problems, because it is one of the better made films this year. Even after the long hiatus, Meghna shows no signs of rustiness and makes an extremely confident comeback. While Vishal's tightly bounded script helps her, the way she visualises it is very effective. She also manages to round up an extremely competent bunch of actors, lead by Irrfan Khan and Neeraj Kabi, who add an X-factor to every scene. The only one that seems to have lost her brilliance is Konkona, as her performance leaves a lot to be desired.
Neeraj Kabi, who plays the father, seems a little out of his depth in some scenes, but otherwise puts in a brilliant performance. Irrfan, on the other hand, is in terrific form. It's a film that gives him enough wiggle width to show off his wide range of expressions. He has his one liners and also his emotional outbursts. The storytelling by Meghna is brilliant in some scenes. The way she recreates the events of the morning after the murder, in 3 different ways, is amazing.
While most critics are going gaga about this film, my problem is that I could not empathise with the characters. The audience is not drawn in. In a bid to keep it neutral. the team doesn't want us (the audience) to invest emotionally. And on the other hand, they tell the tale in such a way that it biases your mind and then makes the other side of the story totally farcical. It's this confusion that makes the impact of the film low. This Talvar, though well made, definitely lacks Dhaar.
Rating: 6/10
Meghna takes you through 3 different angles of the same story and they all seem plausible (though not logical) as you take the journey along with her. But even though Meghna claims to be unbiased, she surely implies one theory was right. By focussing on the incompetencies of the police department and the investigating officers, she makes it clear that their analysis is wrong ( which it was!). Additionally, the film shows 2 CDI ( read CBI) teams investigating the same crime - 1) By Irrfan Khan, who goes about the investigation in a completely unbiased way and 2) By Atul Kumar , who decides that the parents are guilty and then goes about proving it! So while the team tries to make it unbiased, it clearly is. If they truly wanted to make it unbiased, they would have made the other officer a little more stable and Irrfan, a little more biased.
It's this inherent confusion in Vishal Bharadwaj's mind that makes the sword of justice blunt and the impact low. While it's disturbing to see the way the investigations were carried out, the impact is lost by making the police department almost comically incompetent ( which it unfortunately is!). Also, the film could have been a little shorter. But enough about the problems, because it is one of the better made films this year. Even after the long hiatus, Meghna shows no signs of rustiness and makes an extremely confident comeback. While Vishal's tightly bounded script helps her, the way she visualises it is very effective. She also manages to round up an extremely competent bunch of actors, lead by Irrfan Khan and Neeraj Kabi, who add an X-factor to every scene. The only one that seems to have lost her brilliance is Konkona, as her performance leaves a lot to be desired.
Neeraj Kabi, who plays the father, seems a little out of his depth in some scenes, but otherwise puts in a brilliant performance. Irrfan, on the other hand, is in terrific form. It's a film that gives him enough wiggle width to show off his wide range of expressions. He has his one liners and also his emotional outbursts. The storytelling by Meghna is brilliant in some scenes. The way she recreates the events of the morning after the murder, in 3 different ways, is amazing.
While most critics are going gaga about this film, my problem is that I could not empathise with the characters. The audience is not drawn in. In a bid to keep it neutral. the team doesn't want us (the audience) to invest emotionally. And on the other hand, they tell the tale in such a way that it biases your mind and then makes the other side of the story totally farcical. It's this confusion that makes the impact of the film low. This Talvar, though well made, definitely lacks Dhaar.
Rating: 6/10
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