Dec 03, 2016 12:20 PM
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Today I watch Kahani 2 it is good thriller and suspense movie. Despite a taut first half and a well-rounded performance by Vidya Balan, the film fails the audience when it does away with subtlety and starts telegraphing its punches.
Vidya Balan is back. As Durga Rani Singh, the protagonist of Kahaani 2, which is not a sequel to the first part, but a stand-alone second instalment of a series that director Sujoy Ghosh is interested in fashioning. The first Kahaani had Balan play a heavily pregnant woman in search of a missing husband. It was set in Kolkata, and that was a win. Sated with the too-familiar by-ways of Dilli-Mumbai, Kolkata was refreshing.
So was Balan’s playing of Vidya(pronounced, quite properly, Bidya, in good Bangla) Bagchi who quests and finds: what we got was a mostly-compelling thriller, more why-done-it than whodunit, powered by a fully rounded performance by its leading lady.
The one who keeps you watching is Balan. She puts behind her over-wrought turn in Hamari Adhuri Kahani and gets back to doing what’s she’s done well in the past — giving us a solid, fleshed-out character with motivations she makes us see, and feel.
After Kahaani, which took us into a fresh space, this one disappoints. If Ghosh does plan on making a third, he’ll have to up his game considerably.
Sujoy Ghosh has penned a twisted tale that is engaging throughout, but starts to lose its grip in the second half. In 2012, he amazed audiences with an unusual story of a pregnant woman, but this one isn’t a spine-chilling thriller like the first one. So if Kahaani is your benchmark when you go in to watch the sequel, you may well be disappointed.
That said, Kahaani 2 is certainly a one-time watch. A part that sticks out like a sore thumb, though, is the revelation of Inderjeet’s bitter past and its links with Vidya. Few portions of the narrative are so predictable, that you can easily tell what’s coming next. Given audience exposure to international cinema, the level of suspense and mystery unravels in the blink of an eye.
Vidya is a talented actress, and there are no two ways about that. She carries both her roles with much conviction, but even a performer of her calibre can’t save a mystery loosely written. Arjun looks incredible as a tough cop and there’s a lot of scope for him to showcase his shades, despite this being Vidya’s movie. Jugal Hansraj makes somewhat of a comeback in this movie and looks good in his short but pivotal role. Kharaj Mukherjee and Tota Roy Chowdhury too are apt in their small roles.
Besides the busy streets of Kolkata, this movie takes you to the hills of Kalimpong, a hill station in West Bengal. The cinematographer, Tapan Basu, has shot Kahaani 2 pretty nicely. The great part about the Kahaani franchise is the music, which hardly breaks the engaging flow of the story. Lyricist Amitabh Bhattacharya and composer Clinton Cerejo have done a fair job with Mehram and Aur Main Khush Hoon, which are not only melodious, but also take the story ahead.
All in all, Kahaani 2 is definitely below expectations, and will only excite you if you’re a Vidya Balan fan, or if you watch it as a standalone mystery, unlike the nail biting prequel, Kahaani.
