Anubhav Sinha’s reminder of a recent tragedy holds your attention with Rajkummar Rao and Pankaj Kapur’s powerful performances.
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Bhumi Pednekar, Pankaj Kapur, Ashutosh Rana, Dia Mirza, Kritika Kamra
Director: Anubhav Sinha
Writers: Anubhav Sinha, Saumya Tiwari, Sonali Jain
Following the government-imposed COVID-19 lockdown, as pale and weary faces wait for their fate at an important checkpost between two unnamed states, Balram Trivedi (Pankaj Trivedi) asks his friend, “Border ban gaye apne hi desh ke andar?” Anubhav Sinha’s latest outing, Bheed hits you hard the most when moments like this appear on screen.
What’s Yay: Performances, some hard-hitting moments in the film
What’s Nay: Clumsy writing in a few places
Story
“If you know your history, then you would know where you coming from, then you wouldn’t have to ask me, who the heck do I think I am.” With these famous lines by Bob Marley, Anubhav Sinha’s Bheed prepares you for the disturbing introduction scene which features a tired family dozing off on a railway track at night after walking miles during the migrant workers’ exodus in COVID-hit 2020.
Bheed portrays a day in the life of Surya Kumar Singh Tikas (Rajkummar Rao), a cop from the oppressed caste who is given the charge of a crucial check post near a village called Tejpur, where migrants have to be stopped. His lady love, Renu Sharma (Bhumi Pednekar) is a doctor who lends him a helping hand in this situation. There’s Surya’s superior Yadav (Ashutosh Rana) who gets a reminder of how the virus sees no ‘aukaat’ or ‘boundaries’. Stranded at the checkpost is Balram Trivedi (Pankaj Kapur), a bigoted watchman who is ready to revolt when he gets disturbed by his inability to feed his community.
Meanwhile, Geetanjali (Dia Mirza), a wealthy woman trapped in her Toyota Fortuner, showcases her empathy only within the confines of her privilege. At one point, she even jokes about how the poor have a strong immunity. Bheed runs some of its social commentary through an idealistic news anchor Vidhi (Kritika Kamra) who is constantly at loggerheads with a cynical photojournalist (played by Karan Pandit).
With no relief in sight, the age-old lines of caste and religion conflicts begin to surface. Soon, tempers flare up and Surya is forced to rise above the trauma of his hidden lower caste surname and the iron-fisted morality of his job and cry out, “Humein bhi hero bana hain.”
Direction
Anubhav Sinha’s grim depiction of the lockdown horror involving the migrant workers has many effective moments which land a solid punch in your gut. The filmmaker makes sure that his re-telling of the COVID-19 lockdown horror isn’t verbose or pretentious.
However, some of the staging in the film comes across as a bit off. For example, the dialogue exchange between Vidhi and her co-worker regarding ‘Incredible India’ looks like a textbook scene rather than an organic flow. Instead of highlighting the triumphs of humanity, Sinha chooses to focus more on the caste aspect which takes away some of the impact from the film.
Performances
Rajkummar Rao as the troubled cop proves again why he is one of the finest talents in the film industry. He also lends an emotional axle to the narrative and makes you ‘feel’ for his character. Bhumi Pednekar lends an able support.
Pankaj Kapur is terrific as Balram Trivedi and together with Rajkummar, he gives you some strong takeaway scenes. Kritika Kamra delivers an earnest performance despite her weakly-sketched part. Dia Mirza, Ashutosh Rana and Aditya Srivastava are sincere in their respective roles.
Technical Aspects
While Soumik Mukherjee’s black and white framing produces some powerful imagery in the close-up shots, it’s debatable whether this monochromatic tone for the entire film makes any difference to the story-telling. Atanu Mukherji’s editing is effective.
Music
Mangesh Dhadke’s haunting music heightens the emotional quotient of the film. The songs in Bheed work more as a story-telling device.
Verdict
One of the characters in Bheed tells another, “Ghar se nikal kar gaye the, ghar se hi aa rahe hain aur ghar hi jaa rahe hain.” Anubhav Sinha with his latest Rajkummar Rao-Bhumi Pednekar starrer makes sure that you reach yours with some ‘food’ for thought.
