Let the truth be said, I am a Mardaani franchise fan, mainly for Rani Mukerji and the monstrous villains. I was equally excited for the new addition this cop universe directed by Abhiraj Minawala and backed by Aditya Chopra’s Yash Raj Films. The film features Mallika Prasad, Prajesh Kashyap and Janki Bodiwala in pivotal roles. The third installment also revolves around the crimes related to the case of missing young girls. As shown in the trailer, Amma is the head of this nexus, and what starts off as a simple story of kidnapping leads Shivani to a much serious crime of human trafficking. While the film is not entirely a let down, but the stakes were quite high and the expectations were not met on some levels. Read the review!
Plot
Shivani Shivaji Roy (Rani Mukerji) is transferred to Delhi to handle a high-profile kidnapping case. An ambassador’s daughter along with the house-help’s child are kidnapped by a gang and sold to Amma’s men. However, this kidnapping case only leads Shivani to a much more serious crime of missing young girls, and the beggar mafia. In the first half, Shivani and her team are determined to bring back the two girls, but simultaneously they also do a major crackdown of the begging rackets. In this investigation, she also receives help from Ramanujan (Prajesh Kashyap), the founder of a trust that works towards the rehabilitation of children forced into begging. Janki Bodiwala as the Constable Fatima becomes Shivani’s right hand. In the second half, Shivani Shivaji Roy continues her chase to catch Amma and her ally, and crack the case of the missing girls to safely bring them home.
What’s Interesting?
Rani Mukerji is the glue that holds this film brilliantly with her grounded and nuanced performance. The actor nails in every department, whether it’s the pointed dialogue delivery, the anger-filled action sequences or balancing the cool Shivani Shivaji Roy’s no BS attitude amid all the angst. Rani Mukerji’s eyes are so expressive that I will not stop talking about them for the next few days. The actor keeps it real and raw even when the film slightly intends to become dramatic!
The First Half!
The first half of Mardaani 3 is engaging and well-packaged. The investigation moves at a decent pace, the chase sequences and action are balanced and the gloomy aesthetics of Delhi also add depth to the tone of this film. In one particular scene where Shivani is following Ramanujan in the streets of Delhi, this intense moment is amped up with the background score. The interval block featuring Shivani and Amma’s face-off also sets the mood of the film just right!
The film also attempts to shed some light on the existing issues in the system, and the problems of the police officers. A major focus is put on reminding us about the deeply-rooted problems of class divides by constantly stressing on how kidnapping case of an ambassador’s daughter is prioritised over that of the house-help’s child. Or when a officer casually tells Shivani about the need of night-googles and she responds, “Zyaada angrezi picture dekhne laga hai kya”, and goes on to state some basic issues that still remains unresolved. Well, such moments are not overpowering in the film but they do the job pretty well. In fact, the existing misogyny in every profession is also highlighted in Mardaani 3 through Constable Fatima’s character, who is just considered good enough to serve tea at the police station. But of course, Shivani sees her potential beyond that!
Interestingly, in times when films forget to pay attention to details and focus more on making everything look larger-than-life, borderline illogical, Mardaani 3 still holds its ground and treat the issue with sensitivity. At least in the first half!
Which Brings To The Disappointing Aspects!
The second half of the narrative is in a hurry to wrap up the film. The movie goes haywire in terms of the storyline, and character arcs. There are two villains in the film, but the writing for both the antagonist is very weak. It does not do justice to the villains from the first two installments of this franchise. But well, more on that later. The crime in question is dealt so superficially that it only left me frustrated. The motive behind the kidnapping of young girls aged between 8-11 is explained so half-heartedly that it instantly kills the purpose of the Mardaani franchise. Basically, it handles the case very lightly and is not convincing at all.
While I was quite excited to see Mallika Prasad’s Amma, and the actor has done a good job is justifying the character. However, Amma only boils down to becoming one of those caricaturist portrayal of the gang-leader that tries hard to create an intimidating environment but only gets the most cliched character traits like singing a song or of course, the devilish laugh. Amma’s ally in the film also fails to impress, and that has a lot to do with writing.
The Climax of Mardaani 1 and 2 hit-hard. I vividly remember the anger-fueled Shivani Shivaji Roy beating the villain, and that angst felt so personal. Mardaani was always a mirror to the society, but this time the film feels preachy towards the end. A similar climax is attempted even here but it’s not the same. Again blame the writing!
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Verdict
It was really nice to go back to the Shivani Shivaji Roy’s cop-universe. I was invested in the first half too, and well, in Rani Mukerji’s acting throughout. However, compared to the other parts, this part will hardly have any recall value. Mardaani 3 is currently running in theatres, do watch it once!