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Movie Review: ‘Judgementall Hai Kya’

With Kangana Ranaut and Rajkummar Rao reuniting for this project, ‘Judgementall Hai Kya’ already had the audiences intrigued from the first trailers. With Ekta Kapoor and Shobha Kapoor producing the film, Prakash Kovelamudi was directing this one which ended up in a couple of controversies before its release. However, does it ultimately deliver what it promises to the audiences.

Bobby Grewal (Ranaut) faces a tough childhood thanks to a broken down relationship between her parents and she has a distressing experience. She lives by herself but due to suffering from acute psychosis, she has been advised to take her medicines regularly. When Keshav (Rao) and his wife Reema (Amyra Dastur) move into the flat next to hers, she suddenly becomes somewhat mesmerised by Keshav. The more she keeps an eye on him, the more she discovers. However, is she discovering things about him for real or is it her imagination playing games?

Kovelamudi manages to portray an interesting set of characters on the screen, with screenplay by the renowned Kanika Dhillon. Keshav and Bobby are difficult to fathom to say the least but the way Bobby;s inner struggle is portrayed is somewhat impressive. The film’s ultimate message of providing an insight into a character who has mental health issues is enough to draw you in but whether you stay drawn is a very different story.

Ranaut and Rao together are absolutely magic. These who actors, no matter what characters you place them in, will come out on top when placed with one another and this is something that happens in this film. Ranaut’s performance as Bobby can be argued as being her career best but it’s also evident that only she can convince the audiences by playing such a role. It’s not easy to show someone with mental struggles so convincingly and she does so with so much ease. She is supported well by Rao who equally makes the audiences dither between believing him and not being able to fully trust him. The suspense, in that sense, is something that keeps the audiences guessing throughout the film right up until the climax. Amrita Puri and Amyra Dastur make solid additions to the cast too, both showing that they can have an impact even with powerhouses like Rao and Ranaut in the same frame. Jimmy Sheirgill in his short role is also another trusted actor to have in the cast.

Overall, ‘Judgementall Hai Kya’ has a lot of stuff going for it – the issue of mental health is a relatively open one in terms of Indian cinema, to say the least. What lets the film down, unfortunately, is that there’s way too much focus put on showing how Bobby’s character feels, thinks and functions. This takes away from the crux of the story and her character seems to falter even when it perhaps should develop. Perhaps this was the effect the makers were going for but the climax really lets the entire narrative down. The way the “truth” is revealed when the audiences have been on tenterhooks almost throughout is disappointing and really not believable. Without giving away the entire plot, it’s safe to say that there are a few blanks within the story which could have been seamlessly filled by cutting back on the imaginative boldness included to show a mental state.

If you’re looking for a film which will keep you at the edge of your seat and stay with you as you move through the story of the film, this definitely isn’t one film that’ll do that. However, you’ll leave the cinema hall feeling that Ranaut was the best choice possible for Bobby. She doesn’t top all the roles she’s played but she definitely shows that she is able to tackle characters which have no rationale and still have the audiences on her side.