Review of Jigra: Alia Bhatt and Vedang Raina Shine in Emotional Brother-Sister Story, but Fall Flat in Jailbreak Thriller-Drama
Name: Jigra
Director: Vasan Bala
Cast: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Aditya Nanda, Vivek Gomber
Writer: Vasan Bala, Debashish Irengbam
Rating: 2.5/5
Plot:
Satya (Alia Bhatt) and Ankur (Vedang Raina) are orphans. Satya, being the elder one, is over-protective of her brother and is more like a parent to him. They live with a rich and powerful relative of theirs. Satya never feels like she, or her brother, is a part of their family.
Ankur is a programmer. He is good friends with Kabir, the son of the relative Satya and Ankur are living with. They go to Hanshi Dao, an island in South East Asia, to pitch a business idea. One night, when Ankur and Kabir are returning to their hotel rooms, they get caught by the local police. Kabir is the one with the drugs but it is Ankur who gets wrongly implicated, much thanks to Kabir’s powerful father. Ankur is given a life sentence.
It is now up to Satya to save her innocent brother from being electrocuted in the Hanshi Dao prison. Will she be able to save her brother? Watch Jigra to find that out.
What works for Jigra
What really works for Jigra is the strong brother-sister bond. Alia Bhatt as the protective sister who can go to any lengths to save her innocent brother, makes you root for her, even if she’s not always morally right. All that Vedang Raina’s character has to go through in the prison is shown so effectively that it shatters you to the core. The film’s cinematography and background score is excellent. Lastly, the song Phoolo Ka Taaro Ka (reprised version) is beautifully used.
What doesn’t work for Jigra
Jigra’s story lacks novelty and the plot is paper-thin. It is quite longer than what it should and could have been. While the first half of the film plays smooth, the second half throws logic out of the window. Logic is what’s most critical about a jailbreak film and that’s what is heavily compromised on. In retrospect, the emotional payoff in the second half is good.
Jigra doesn’t have enough fervour required to make it standout. It doesn’t have enough adrenaline-pumping sequences to give you the necessary high. What could have been a smart jailbreak film, turns out being a film where you have to suspend your senses in order for it to leave an impression.
Watch the Jigra Trailer
Performances In Jigra:
Alia Bhatt as Satya is dependable. She holds the film as well as she can. She nails it in the emotional sequences towards the end. Vedang Raina as Ankur is very good. He puts his heart and soul into the character. The scene where he is lashed-on by a fellow inmate is emotionally taxing. You feel his pain. Vivek Gomber as the Jailer is menacing. He makes you hate him. Manoj Pahwa as the father of a prisoner who was falsely implicated by the Hanshi Dao police is all heart. Other supporting actors in the film do a fair job.
Final Verdict:
Vasan Bala’s Jigra is a mixed bag. It is too inconsistent and illogical to be a smart jailbreak film but it fairly succeeds as an emotional drama focusing on the bond of a brother and sister.
You can watch Jigra at a theatre near you now. Have you watched Jigra yet? If yes, what do you think about it?
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