Dukaan (2024) Review!!

Synopsis – A girl who becomes a surrogate mother, becoming the relief for couples with issues.

My Take – Though often credited to have started the discourse around the hushed-up topic of surrogacy to the Hindi speaking audience, the Abbas Mustan directorial, Chori Chori Chupke Chupke (2001), painted with every and all maddening stereotypes, couldn’t have handled the concept of arrangement any worse.

Hence, it wasn’t until the recent successes of the star-studded comedy Good Newwz (2019) and Mimi (2021), for which Kriti Sanon won the National award for best actress, the concept has found itself back into mainstream cinema.

Marking the directorial debut of Siddharth–Garima, known for their work as screenwriters and lyricists, particularly in three Sanjay Leela Bhansali epics, Kabir Singh (2019) and Animal (2023), this latest one aims to take a step further by exploring how surrogate mothers monetize their wombs and sheds light on the exploitation they often face from biological parents.

But while the concept is undeniably intriguing and carries a profound social commentary, the execution struggles to achieve the desired levels of sophistication, resonance, and complexity to work. Sure, it offers thought-provoking moments but falls short in fully realizing it’s potential.

Indeed, the film excels in the cinematography and musical department, more than elevating the visual and auditory experience, yet despite choosing a strong subject the rushed screenplay fails to leave a lasting impression even with an adequate resolution. Still, it’s worth watching for Monika Panwar’s compelling lead performance or for anyone looking to delve into some Garba moves.

Taking place in Anand, Gujarat, the story follows Chameli (Monika Panwar), a firebrand young woman toughened by her father’s constant abuse, who renames herself Jasmine Patel just to sound unique. Due to a tragic incident in her household causes her to dislike children right from a young age, and determined to do something better in life, Jasmine even bags herself a husband in the open-minded yet older Sumer (Sikandar Kher), a single father with a daughter only few years younger than herself.

However, tragedy strikes when she loses her husband in the 2001 Gujarat earthquake. Leaving her alone to earn an income for her neglected son and to pay for her stepdaughter’s wedding, Jasmine joins Dr Navya Chandel (Geetika Tyagi) in the surrogacy business.

But her bliss new life takes an unexpected turn when finds herself getting too attached to her fourth baby-bulge, and when she is dismissed by the biological mother, Diya (Monali Thakur), she absconds, leading to a long battle of claim.

Replicating the tone of Sanjay Leela Bhansali films, directors Siddharth-Garima present an intriguing story that looks at many nuances and complexities of surrogacy. They look beyond the commercial aspect, touching on themes of love, sacrifice, and intricate relationships. Nevertheless, the end result is a mixed bag. The screenplay rushes through scenes and stitches them together through musical interludes. But it makes you lose all sense of time and place.

The first and second halves are like long montages the way that the narrative moves a full speed, not allowing us time to catch up. It also doesn’t help that the film is infected with tonal inconsistency. It suddenly goes from being funny to being serious to being funny again to being serious again, and so on.

Here, director Siddharth-Garima have surely picked a debatable subject but it’s too flawed in its execution. The screenplay takes a long time to get to the film’s crux, and the spotlight is on Jasmine rather than the story itself.

Indeed, the narrative is intermittently engaging but it doesn’t foster an emotional connection the way such a sensitive subject demands. The story’s pivotal part is how Jasmine endeavors to make amends for her mistakes and reunite with her son. But, the actual point of contention between Jasmine and the couple is unnecessarily drawn out and melodramatic.

Performance wise, Monika Panwar, who stole the show in the Netflix series, Jamtara – Sabka Number Ayega (2020) and Choona (2023), does complete justice to her role and captivates in every scene. Portraying an audacious character with emotional depth. Sikandar Kher is good too in a role that is too brief.

Monali Thakur and Soham Majumdar are alright in supporting roles, who despite being the distraught parents struggle to draw out the necessary sympathy. Sunny Deol’s cameo feels forced. On the whole, ‘Dukaan’ is an intriguing concept that required more nuance in its execution.