Vasan Bala’s film Jigra starring Alia Bhatt and Vedang Raina created a buzz with the trailer release. The film promised action, thriller and the strong bond of a brother and sister. Well, I did carry high hopes from the film and to my surprise, this one did not let me own. The film is a prison break thriller that is set in a small island in Vietnam. It has an amazing supporting cast of Manoj Pahwa, Vikram Gobram and Rahul Ravindran. The film was a bit stretched and slow-paced too, but however, there are many elements that I liked. So here goes a detailed review on Jigra.
Plot
Jigra is a story around Satya (Alia Bhatt) and her unconditional for her younger brother Ankur (Vedang Raina). Ten minutes into the film, and we know that the two children have a past trauma of watching their father die by suicide in front of them. Satya and Ankur are taken care of by their distant relatives, and Satya works as a manager as their house. The bright Ankur is an engineer who pitches a brilliant idea to his guardian, and he gets the opportunity to connect with an investor. For this work, he flies to Hanoi Dao with his cousin. However, both of them get caught by the Hanoi Dao police for speeding, but the police also finds drug on Ankur’s cousin. To save himself, he lies in front of the police and puts the entire blame on Ankur. Now, the only punishment for a drug offender in Hanoi Dao is death sentence. But with a sister like Satya, that’s certainly not an option on the table.
Satya immediate flies to Hanoi Dao and tries every possible way to get his brother out. That’s when she meets Manoj Pahwa’s Bhatia and Rahun Ravindran’s Mutthu. Both the characters also have their loved ones inside the jail. All three of them plan a prison break to rescue their kids before their death sentence, but the boys inside the jail also have an escape plan.The second half is all about the escape and prison break. Some plans fail but some succeed. Now, I am not breaking the spoilers for you, even if the plot is predictable.
Also Read: Neetu Kapoor Hails Alia Bhatt’s Performance In Jigra, Gives It Five Stars!
Performances
Alia Bhatt’s performance as Satya is superb. Her character is not very layered, rather very straightforward but she pulls it off with much conviction. During the emotional scenes with her younger brother, Alia expresses the emotions with a subtleness. She is exceptionally impressive in the hand-to-hand sequences with Muthhu (Rahul Ravindran). I really liked their face-off but it does not end well, and it was heartbreaking.
Vedang Raina is good. He has less screen presence than what one would expect. However, after The Archies, Vedang gets a more stronger role to prove his skills as an actor. Although, I wished he would have been a little better in the crying sequences, the emotional punch was missing.
Supporting Cast Was Too Good!
Manoj Pahwa plays Bhatia, and ex-goon whose son is inside the jail. He comes on board with Satya to plan a prison break and help her in every possible. He becomes like a father figure to Satya but supports her crazy endeavours like a best friend. The chemistry between both the actors was natural and charming.
Rahul Ravindran as Muthhu leave a memorable performance. He shares a love-hate relationship with Satya which turns ugly in the second half, but the actor delivers every emotion with perfection.
Story
The storytelling was bit slow in the first half, it mostly establishes the bond between Satya-Ankur, and how the latter fall into a deadly trap. Some emotional scenes are stretched but I found myself invested because of the performances and also the storyline about how a sister was ready to go to any lengths to save her brother. In the second half, the story picks up pace and moves a little faster. More action, drama and twists are reserved for post-interval. However, the climax was quite a stretch, but I was still hooked because some intense camera shots and Alia Bhatt’s action.
Verdict: Alia Bhatt, Supporting Cast Are Top-Notch, Story Is Predictable And Slow
Since the film’s plot mostly happens in a foreign land, English is the medium of conversation so keep that it mind when you go for the film. The film’s story is not very unusual and unpredictable, so it is not as thrilling and engaging if we strictly judge it on the basis of a thriller. But Monica, Oh My Darling still remains my favourite Vasan Bala film. However, Jigra is a good one time watch, especially if you are an Alia Bhatt. You won’t come out of the theatre feeling disappointed as Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video.