JIGRA rests on some emotional moments and Alia Bhatt’s performance.
Jigra Review 2.5/5 & Review Rating
Star Cast: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina
Director: Vasan Bala
Jigra Movie Review Synopsis:
JIGRA is the story of a fearless sister. Satya (Alia Bhatt) and Ankur (Vedang Raina) are orphans. After the death of their parents, they are taken care of by Mr Mehtani (Akashdeep Sabir) and his family, who are their distant relatives. Satya works with them and handles their day-to-day affairs. Ankur and Mehtani’s son Kabir (Aditya Nanda) are buddies and have worked on a project. A client (Sikandar Kher) in the country of Hanshi Dao expresses interest in their venture. Ankur and Kabir, thus, travel to Hanshi Dao. Their meeting is successful but the same day, they get arrested after police find drugs in Kabir’s possession. The Mehtanis quickly send their lawyer Jaswant (Harssh Singh) to Hanshi Deo. As per the law of the country, drug possession leads to death punishment. Jaswant persuades Kabir to claim to the authorities that it was Ankur who was carrying drugs and not him. Ankur also confesses the same after giving an assurance that he’ll be set free in a few months. But Ankur is given the death sentence. Satya quickly heads to Hanshi Dao and is determined to get her brother out at any cost. There, she gets help from ex-gangster Shekhar Bhatia (Manoj Pahwa) and ex-cop Muthu (Rahul Ravindran). What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Jigra Movie Story Review:
Debashish Irengbam and Vasan Bala’s story has potential. Debashish Irengbam and Vasan Bala’s screenplay is engaging but also has its share of loose ends. Debashish Irengbam and Vasan Bala’s dialogues are realistic.
Vasan Bala’s direction is decent. With MARD KO DARD NAHI HOTA [2019] and MONICA O MY DARLING [2022], he has proved that he can stylishly execute certain scenes and increase their impact. JIGRA is no exception. He especially uses the slo-mo effect beautifully in the climax (watch out for the roof jump scene). One also gets moved by the plight of Satya and for most parts of the film, viewers would root for her. The intermission point is stylishly cut and is unexpected.
On the flipside, the second half is weak. The film falls once Satya and Muthu get into a confrontation. At this point, one loses respect for Satya. Muthu, after all, isn’t wrong but the actions of Satya make her seem like a psychopath. The finale is full of cinematic liberties. It’s fine as most films will have that. But JIGRA is given a realistic treatment. Hence, the execution and content don’t match.
Jigra Movie Review Performances:
Alia Bhatt, however, gives her heart and soul to the film. She ensures that Satya looks like someone who can go to any length and can fight anyone. She also shines in the emotional scenes. Watch out for her in the scene where she goes to the prison for the first time. Vedang Raina leaves a huge mark and proves that he has a bright future ahead. Manoj Pahwa is dependable as always and also adds some humour to the otherwise serious film. Rahul Ravindran is a great find and the same goes for Ankur Khanna (Rayyan). Vivek Gomber (OIC Hansraj Landa) is terrific and also gets the accent right flawlessly. Akashdeep Sabir, Harssh Singh and Aditya Nanda are decent. Akansha Ranjan Kapoor and Sikandar Kher’s cameos are fair. Radhika Madan and Abhimanyu Dasani also feature in the film in blink-and-miss roles.
Jigra – Official Theatrical Trailer | Alia Bhatt | Vedang Raina
Jigra movie music and other technical aspects:
Achint Thakkar’s music works well in the film. ‘Phoolon Ka Taaro Ka’ is well composed while ‘Tenu Sang Rakhna’ has a haunting feel. The title track is soulful, and ‘Pan India Area King’ is funky. Achint Thakkar’s background score has a cinematic feel.
Swapnil S Sonawane’s cinematography is splendid, and the close shots are well shot. Mukund Gupta’s production design is classy. Veera Kapur Ee’s costumes and Vikram Dahiya’s action are realistic. Prerna Saigal’s editing could have been slicker.
Jigra Movie Review Conclusion: On the whole, JIGRA rests on some emotional moments and a strong performance by Alia Bhatt. But due to a weak second half and mismatch between content and execution, the impact gets diluted. At the box office, it is likely to struggle.
