FILM REVIEWS SACHIN CHATTE
Film: Assi
Cast: Tapsee Pannu, Kani Kusruti, Kumud Mishra, Revathy
Directed by: Anubhav Sinha
Duration: 2 hours 13 minutes
Rating: * * * 1 / 2
There is no gentle way to say this—Anubhav Sinha’s Assi hits you hard. It is, at times, an uneasy watch—and therefore, a very good film. To be clear, the unease does not come from graphic visuals; it comes from statistics read aloud by a lawyer, from stark statements that linger long after they are spoken. If merely listening to these details causes discomfort, one can only imagine the horrors endured by the victims. Sinha not only stabs us in the heart; he twists the knife—quietly, deliberately.
There may or may not be takers for this kind of cinema. It holds up a mirror to society, and the reflection is frightening. We would rather remain in our cocoons and assume that all is well, but that does not make the harsh reality disappear. The film compels us to confront these issues.
That is one aspect of the film—the theme. The other is the craft of storytelling: the choices a director makes to convey his message and the cinematic tools he employs. Sinha stays focused and does not stray from his narrative. The screenplay, co-written by him and Gaurav Solanki, moves at a brisk pace while addressing a range of issues, from gender to justice.
Set in the national capital, Delhi—where, when it comes to women’s safety, the less said the better—the film follows Parima (Kani Kusruti), a Malayali woman married to a North Indian man. The couple live with their young son, and her husband Vinay (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayub) makes a conscious effort to instill good values in the boy. One day, while returning home from school, Parima is abducted by unknown men, assaulted in a moving SUV, and left battered and abused.
The narrative moves forward without dwelling excessively on procedural details. The accused are arrested, and the film does not turn into a conventional police investigation and cuts to the courtroom drama. The prosecution is led by fiery advocate dvocate Raavi (Taapsee Pannu), determined to fight a broken system. Revathy plays the no-nonsense trial judge, while a junior investigating officer—who possesses a conscience but lacks the power to resist the tide of corruption adds another layer to the story. He frequently quotes Ramdhari Singh Dinkar or Ismat Chughtai.
As often happens, evidence is tampered with, DNA samples are botched, and the rich and powerful slip through the cracks, easily. The film reminds us more than once that a rape occurs every 20 minutes in the country—the screen turning red each time to mark the passage of those
20 minutes.
The ever-reliable Kumud Mishra plays Kartik, a fascinating character who works at a supermarket and carries the guilt of his wife’s death, lamenting that he could not be there for her. While it is never explicitly stated whom he once worked for, there is enough to suggest he may have been a mercenary or operative who did the authorities’ dirty work.
The film raises many questions and answers a few. If justice is compromised, is it acceptable to take the law into one’s own hands and hope a vigilante will deliver retribution? And where would that cycle end? Violence would only perpetuate itself in another form. When a mob threatens Raavi by leaving a note on her car for opposing vigilantism, a colleague asks if she is stressed. She replies, “Mujhe to is baat ka stress hai ki inhe na Hindi aati hai na English,” referring dryly to the poorly written bilingual threat.
Ewan Mulligan’s cinematography stays close to the characters in crucial moments, heightening their emotional impact, while Amarjit Singh’s editing remains crisp and controlled. Ranjit Barot’s background score complements the visuals effectively—particularly the santoor motif associated with Kartik, which proves especially evocative.
The cast is in fine form. Satyajit Sharma, as the defense lawyer, makes his character as grating as intended. Kani Kusruti is terrific, as always—take that scene where her face is covered to protect her identity; she renders it powerful through the tremor in her voice alone. Taapsee Pannu delivers a strong, assured performance in a substantial role.
Last month it was Ikkis, this month it is Assi. Good films, it seems, are arriving in numbers.
