Rani Chatterjee and Satya Anand have little in common.
The leads of Karan Johar’s “Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani” and Vasan Bala’s “Jigra” are both played by Alia Bhatt, one of the top actors in her class, and the only connective tissue between the saree-clad romantic heroine and the resolute woman out to save her brother is that if you cross them, or someone they love, they would probably kill you. It’s a trait Bhatt wears on her sleeve — think “Gully Boy” and “Gangubai Kathiawadi” — and Bala unleashes the best iteration of that to date.
“Jigra” is the story of siblings Satya (Alia Bhatt) and Ankur (Vedang Raina), orphaned in their childhood and raised in the home of wealthy relatives. When Ankur ends up on death row for drug possession in the fictional country of Hanshi Dao, Satya resolves to get him free at all costs.
The set up is a little flimsy; writers Debashish Irengbam and Vasan Bala chose to invent an entire nation with puritanically severe drug laws instead of finding another way to get Ankur in prison with a death sentence (Hanshi Dao is culturally Malaysian; clean and advanced and with citizens who speak primarily Mandarin with interjections of “la”). The family history is equally underwritten, barely establishing Satya and Ankur’s relationship to their benefactors before they are never heard from again. In another life, this film pivots to an eat-the-rich revenge fantasy (or perhaps in a sequel?), always a fascinating exercise for mainstream Hindi films produced by and starring the ultra-wealthy themselves. The jailbreak premise propels the movie through its two-and-a-half hour runtime, but erratic editing hinders the story. Scenes are often intercut with something happening in another location, but also at a different time, so it’s not clear which sequences are flashbacks, flash forwards, or altogether imagined. Again and again, viewers are reminded (and gratuitously shown) that Satya and Ankur’s father died by suicide right in front of them — for reasons that are not explored in the slightest (again, for a film that repeatedly alludes to Prakash Mehra’s “Zanjeer,” where is the retribution?!).
But what matters most for “Jigra” is the sibling relationship, sold masterfully by Bhatt and Raina, two of the most talented actors in their respective generations — even more impressive since they spend most of the movie divided after a few critical establishing scenes. Their individual performances are more than strong enough to convey the ache of injustice and separation, and that harm coming to either sibling is unthinkable to the other. Bhatt is a treat to watch when she’s unhinged and formidable, with Raina demonstrating his own range on softer emotions. Manoj Pahwa, Rahul Ravindran, and Vivek Gomber comprise a reliable and dynamic supporting cast as Satya’s allies and Ankur’s chief antagonizer, respectively, Gomber especially making an terrifying meal of an otherwise flat villain.
Satya’s steely intimidation embodies how any cool older sisters looks to her younger siblings (and more to the point: anyone who threatens her younger siblings). She draws blood from a potential assailant because “he was getting in my face.” She beats up Ravindran’s Muthu to get him on her side. She gets one of the best fight scenes I’ve ever seen in a Hindi movie; low on blood and sound effects, but visceral in how it conveys the sheer exhaustion and messiness of physical combat. Mercifully, Satya is freed from sexualization; this is not Priyanka Chopra in “Don” or even Deepika Padukone in “Pathaan,” but a welcome and palpable difference.
Achint Thakkar’s soundtrack scratches the itch of mainstream Hindi music (including the obligatory Arijit Singh vocal) as well as the emotional needs of the movie, with Raina lending his voice to two tracks. The perfunctory “Chal Kudiye” sung by Diljit Dosanjh serves as a soulless end credits commercial ploy and admittedly knocked this review down half a letter grade just by existing (at least get a female singer!).
But “Jigra” is, for the most part, a balm to modern mindless masala cinema (premiering on the same day as “Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video”), with a creative and compelling narrative that it actually sees through, on the shoulders of a killer cast. After you forget about “Chal Kudiye” (and you will!), you’re left to contemplate what person or cause would push you to the lengths that Satya reaches — and what you’d do to those who push you there.
And if there will be a revenge sequel. Please?
Grade: B-
“Jigra” is now playing in theaters.
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