Bhakshak (2024) Review!!

Synopsis – Revolves around the journey of an unwavering woman’s quest to seek justice and her perseverance in getting a heinous crime to light.

My Take – Who doesn’t love a good investigative journalism drama? Especially those that delve into the challenges faced by small-town journalists reporting on powerful crimes.

This latest Netflix offering, written and directed by debutante Pulkit, gives a fictional spin to Muzaffarpur Shelter Home Case, where in Bihar a MLA Brajesh Thakur and eleven others were given life sentence for sexually assaulting minor girls.

Unfolding with the help of a gritty and honest narrative, the feature, co-written by Jyotsana Nath, courageously exposes systemic flaws and navigates a harrowing tale with restraint, shunning sensationalism for authenticity. And with some hard-hitting dialogues to back things up, this well-made film in the end strikes all the right chords to connect with the intended audience.

Backed by Shah Rukh Khan‘s Red Chillies Entertainment, the film belongs to a long line of Hindi films set amidst rowdy, small-town sensibilities where the battle between good and evil is significantly more complex, with a jigsaw of opportunism, trauma, greed and socio-political decadence thrown in the mix for good measure.

Sure, better films about justice in the face of unprecedented, brute odds have been made before, but its messaging is sincere and relevant as it is daunting to watch. With a focus on realism over dramatic highs, the 135 minute long feature stands as a testament to the importance of telling impactful stories.

The story follows Vaishali Singh (Bhumi Pednekar), a small-town budding TV journalist who runs her own robust, indie news channel, in an effort to distance herself from the pitfalls of working for a large media agencies out there. Loyally assisted by her cameraman Baskar Sinha (Sanjay Mishra), Vaishali tries to cover stories of substance but alas, her channel barely gets any eyeballs.

However opportunity comes knocking when her regular source Guptaji (Durgesh Kumar) hands her an audit report that is soon to become just another file gathering dust. Though she initially rejects it, upon insistence, she ends up reading the report about how minor girls are being abused at a shelter home run by well-connected newspaper publisher Bansi Sahu (Aditya Srivastava) in Bihar’s Munnawarpur.

With her conscience not allowing her to just let such heinous crime pass by, Vaishali decides to fights against all the powerful people involved and bring them to justice.

The film begins on a decidedly dark note, foreshadowing the rest of the film and its events.

Yes, the basic premise of a well-intentioned journalist with little to no backing takes on powerful men trying to keep the truth under wraps is a cliché, but the film rises above its own premise because of its unfettered conviction in its own story.

Most importantly, the sensitive matter has been handled with tremendous care by director Pulkit, who, while not shying away from throwing the spotlight on the brutality of the crime, tackle the issue delicately. Some of the sequences trigger without necessarily undressing, so to speak.

From the disorder prevalent amongst small police stations to the power play in politics, everything about the film does evoke rather strong feelings and well, that’s what the film tries to do, after all. The film focuses on the relationship between power and justice and the somber reality this relationship creates.

The film also doesn’t ignore Vaishali’s identity as a woman while trying to paint her as a hero – her family looks down upon her because she’s a woman, her seemingly supportive husband, Arvind (Surya Sharma) doesn’t hesitate to take away her agency when she acts against his wishes. She is, at the end of the day, operating in a patriarchal world.

The path to activism or honest journalism has never been as easy as it might seem from the outside and the film does right to not make it seem easy either.

Performance wise, Bhumi Pednekar embodying the film’s editorial voice with sincerity. Being one of the few actors working today who are choosing films of substance, Bhumi once again managed to do justice to the character.

Playing her right-hand man, the always lovable Sanjay Mishra adds the much need seasoned humor to the dark film, while Aditya Srivastava bring a sense of heftiness to the flick. In other roles, Surya Sharma, Durgesh Kumar, and Sai Tamhankar provide excellent support. On the whole, ‘Bhakshak’ is a no-nonsense gripping investigative thriller bolstered by its honest narrative.