There is now a certain expectation when you watch a film made by Aditya Kripalani. That he is going to bring up front, close and personal real issues. Stark and unfiltered. To the point of deglamourising them that they hurt and connect with you. That is not intentional, that is just the way the director, Aditya Kripalani deals with his subjects. Devi and the Hero, is on the face, Kaali Ghosh, a sex slave who not only has to manage her traumatic past and reality but has a mental condition of multiple personality disorder. Enacted by the endearing and pretty Chitrangada Chakraborty, who has grown in her acting prowess since we last saw her in her debut Aditya Kripalani's film, Tikli and Laxmi Bomb. This film sees her straddle her past, her dreams and nightmares and her desires with a whimsical innocence and a hidden hunger. The film is a telling of her journey and how she achieves clarity and confidence and finally an acceptance of her truth. How she unbundles all of them through conversations with her near messed-up psychiatrist. So, while the film is the unravelling of Kaali and her many minds, it twists to lead up into the head of her shrink, too! A sexual addiction that he is grappling with and how Kaali, as his patient becomes a compatriot in his struggle. This is a very interesting turn in the story. How do professionals who help others, in this case, the psychiatrist, Vikrant Saraswat, played by Vinay Sharma whom you might grow to get comfortable with, what happens to the likes of them? How do they un-box their struggles and manage them? With this narrative, Aditya Kripalani has, in his version of being true to real, layered his film with multiple themes. The whole gender piece with Kaali and her empowerment asked me the question, "Is the Devi or the Hero? Or, both?" And this. While the psychiatrist whose addiction for his patient turns to form a relationship of friendship, of protection, of empathy. The ability to bring to screen topics on sexual abuse, mental health, addictions; with a female lead as a Devi and Hero, reflects the ability of a director who is willing for his viewers to question and dialogue and in the process bring to the mainstream hitherto many insofar, undiscussable societal truths. The highpoint of the film is the end which allowed me to make peace and is the very reason why you should see this film - emerging from oppression, a vibrant, pulsating and evocative dance drama that beckons hope and optimism.
