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The topic of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiawadi is women of the world’s oldest profession doing their craft and striving for justice in Bombay’s Kamathipura during the Nehruvian era. The period drama, on the other hand, is precisely produced for effect rather than real truth. The result is an absorbing picture that, while running little more than two and a half hours, does not feel unduly long.
People had questioned the casting of the film with Alia playing the lead. However, in a world where every day around 4000 prostitutes struggle for their basic needs, showing Alia as their flag bearer has done justice to the script as she has left no stone unturned to prove her acting abilities. We don’t need to be concerned with the actress’ physical similarity to Gangubai since she was probably simply a footnote in the annals of Bombay’s underworld and the general public had no idea what she looked like. What matters is that Alia Bhatt, with the strength of a phenomenal star turn, brings the real-life heroine to life so vividly that all questions dissolve.
The tunes that play in the background and the movie posters (Chaudhvin Ka Chand, Jahazi Lutera) on the walls of Kamathipura and the cinema theatre that serves the neighborhood reflect the era. Overlook the fact that when an Urdu journalist presents Gangubai a copy of his magazine, we see a magazine written in English, or that all of the infants born at Gangubai’s brothel appear to be girls. These are small faults in a cinematic narrative whose aims outweigh these annoying quirks.
The aesthetically lavish character study, which is more baroque than 1950s Bombay, is both vast and intimate. Gangubai Kathiawadi takes the form of a compelling tale of one woman’s individuality, tenacity, and meteoric ascent to power, with the aid of relentless drama riding on several well-mounted sequences, which, of course, is Bhansali’s proven forte, and pterodactyl compassion for a lot of the women who are auctioned for a song and pushed to earn a living in a cesspit from which there is no escape.
Rahim Lala, a mafia don, is played by Ajay Devgn in a lengthy appearance. Jim Sarbh appears as an Urdu journalist who stands up for Gangubai and the women she represents when the chips are down. In a short scene, Rahul Vohra plays Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, who granted Gangubai an audience in Delhi.
Shantanu Maheshwari is a young tailor who makes Gangubai happy. Indira Tiwari plays Kamli, Gangubai’s confidante and closest friend at the brothel. Despite their brief screen time, all of them leave an impression.
A few scenes stand out due to their outstanding language (Prakash Kapadia and Utkarshini Vashishtha). One has Alia Bhatt’s Gangubai competing against Vijay Raaz’s Razia Bai at an Irani café that she and her pals frequent for the bheja fry and nalli nihari. It squeaks.
The other is an impromptu speech given by Gangubai at a women’s empowerment protest at Azad Maidan. It not only summarises the aim of Gangubai Kathiawadi with amazing clarity and strength, but it also allows Alia Bhatt to reach her peak and sign off on a high note.
Written by: Saumya Singh
Author’s bio:
Saumya Singh is a budding lifestyle and entertainment journalist. She believes that lifestyle journalism is not everyone’s cup of tea. She holds the view that just like hard stories, covering soft stories also deserves their appreciation because it is a part of journalism that appeals to the masses.
