The fundamental premise of the brothel - with all its bickering, love-hate relationships, and the 'hidden child' oscillates as the director pans into the world of the two government officials - Srivastava (Ashish Vidyarthi) and Ilyas (Rajat Kapoor), who are tasked with evicting Begum Jaan. It is the attempt of Srijit Mukherji to attempt too much at one go, using narrative props that are not too original that makes Begum Jaan often a tedious watch. At other times, it aspires to become a statement on the Partition itself and how the big deep division on the lines of religion went on to divide people who were happily co-existing without regard for any differences. While it is not historic anecdotes that have Vidya Balan in the guise of anyone from Rani Laxmibhai to Razia Sultan, it resembles a theatre - with characters even resorting to tableaux mode. Yet, if the role fails to satisfy, awe you and move you as Smita and Shabana so well did in their movies, the blame lies more in the narrative framework of the film that simply slips in and out of control.
She adopts that totally unrestrained body language and her rage against the men and servitude to the king are all fantastic setpieces of acting in modern cinema. It is to their league then that Vidya Balan's Begum Jaan must rise, and that indeed is what makes this film interesting.Īs the brothel-keeper who faces eviction following the Partition, Vidya Balan is all fire and in full form, no doubt. Both are classics in their own right and had some power-packed performances by Shabana Azmi and Smita Patil. Begum Jaan has a powerful backdrop, and while it is set immediately post-Independence, the theme finds great resonance in today's times.ĭirector Srijit Mukherji, who had a winner in the original Bengali version, had two big referral points to go by - Shyam Benegal's Mandi and Ketan Mehta's Mirch Masala.
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