Post the shocking Nirbhaya gang rape in 2012, a major section of the society has begun to see the problems faced by women more seriously and in a new light. It has also led to Bollywood making multiple films on this subject. PINK, MAATR and MOM dealt with this growing menace in recent times and now Sanjay Dutt choses this hard-hitting topic for his comeback film, BHOOMI. So does this film turn out to be an entertaining one or does it fail, let's analyse.
Omung Kumar's direction is very weak. He has used all the Bollywood clichés and made the film extremely violent. Everyone is corrupt and the society is full of hypocrites in this story. Three scenes however are very well executed – when Sanjay Dutt gets new shoes for Aditi, the courtroom scene where Dutt gives a hard hitting speech and when Sanjay Dutt informs about the punishment for rape in different countries of the world to one of the victims.
Coming to performances, Sanjay Dutt is brilliant and his emotions look genuine. He looks convincing as a helpless father and also powerful when he takes revenge in the final scenes. The way his eyes do all the talking in the police station scene is seen to be believed. Aditi Rao Hydari is good in her part and her portrayal of a rape survivor is very impactful. You genuinely feel for her in the film. Sharad Kelkar is the best out of all the villains. He looks very convincing. Riddhi Sen (Jeetu) delivers an effective performance and he has a crucial part in the film. Veer Aryan (Ghulam) gets little scope but does fine. Puru Chibber is quite nice as the rapist as well as the helpless target of Arun. Shekhar Suman (Taj) is wasted. Sidhant Gupta does well in his cameo.
Sachin-Jigar's music is weak and has no scope. 'Will You Marry Me', played during opening credits, is the only one that works. 'Jai Mata Di' played in the climax enhances impact. The Sunny Leone item song 'Trippy Trippy' looks forced and is badly placed. Ismail Darbar's background score is strong.
Arthur Zurawski's cinematography is very good. Vanita Omung Kumar's production design is authentic and rustic. Jayesh Shikharkhane's editing is disappointing. The 135 minute long film should have been trimmed by 15-20 minutes to create the necessary impact. Javed- Aejaz's action is too gory and might put off the family audiences.
On the whole, BHOOMI comes across as a decent entertainer with power packed performance by Sanjay Dutt. At the box office, it will have to compete with other releases for its share of footfalls.
