Starring: Nimrat Kaur, Radhika Madan, Bhagyashree, Subodh Bhave, Soham Majumdar Chinmay Mandlekar Shruti Vyas, Sumeet Vyas, Sneha Raikar
Director: Mikhil Musale
‘Sajini Shinde Ka Viral Video’ (SSKV) might remind the viewers of the famous saying “life is what happens to you when you are busy making other plans”. Even something seemingly trivial can effectively wreak havoc in one’s neatly curated and balanced life. This unsettling and scary prospect is what SSKV, at its core, explores.
Sajini Shine (Madan) – who works as a science teacher at a reputed school and is engaged to Siddhant Kadam (Majumdar), a man with a seemingly modern outlook towards life – finds herself at the centre of a raging controversy the morning after her birthday party when a video showing her under the influence of alcohol and dancing explicitly during the party goes viral on social media sites.
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What ensues is a tragic chain of events with catastrophic personal and professional consequences for Sajini, who goes missing shortly after the ordeal begins. The film does a very good job at exploring how Sajini and, by extension, women in general, are expected to live up to several contradicting standards at once; she must be modern yet also traditional, independent yet also reserved and ambitious yet also unmaterialistic. Sajini’s circumstances may be dramatised but the societal pressure and shaming she faces is quite tangible and real.
The audience will also witness Kaur, known for her powerful performances in hit films like the ‘Lunchbox’ and ‘Airlift’, flesh out a refreshing and original character in Inspector Bela Barot, whose no-nonsense attitude and rough-around-the-edges demeanour carries the story forward beautifully. Bhave’s rendering of the orthodox father Suryakant Shinde, whose concern for his own reputation seems to outweigh that for his daughter, does a fantastic job at presenting an irritable character. The entire supporting cast has done a great justice to their characters and each character – whether it is Sajini’s mother (Raikar), the headteacher (Bhagyashree) or the sub-inspector (Mandlekar) – contribute very well to the script and the plot.
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Written and directed by Musale, this thriller drama which recently had its digital premiere on Netflix, sure does serve a gripping story with a surprisingly realistic portrayal of the kind of pressure women continue to face both personally and professionally.
Overall, a great weekend watch.