Closing date of submitting entries to the celebrated photographer Vardhaan Pathak’s nationally popular photography contest is nearing. Marathi film Chhabi is about a photography aficionado Parth (Dhruv Chheda) who is planning to visit Kerala along with his colleague for shooting pics on the subject of nature and culture to enter into the contest. His girlfriend Vedika (Srushti Bahekar) supports him in achieving his dreams to win the national competition.
Whereas Parth’s parents have already planned the family’s visit to Dhamapur village in the Konkan region of Maharashtra for attending the wedding of his uncle Rajaram’s (Apurva Kavade) daughter Priyanka. Being a mama’s boy Parth has no choice but to accompany his dad and mom to travel to Konkan region. Contrary to Parth’s expectation the journey unfolds the beautiful flora and fauna of Konkan which has been brilliantly captured. During the pre-wedding ceremony Parth gets involved with his cousins in celebrations and the result is the magical marriage song Shubh Mangal Savdhaan that is creatively choreographed and performed well by Dhruv Chheda, being his debut feature film.
Dhruv Chheda as Parth displays innocence and mischief in his eyes. These mannerisms show in the dance and song while he is teasing the bride. It is a feel good journey throughout the first half of this suspense thriller having a duration of 111 minutes. Kudos to director Advait Masurkar for bringing out the best of flora and fauna of Konkan region, the depiction of innocence and affection of the rural folk there. Some of the scenes of Parth exploring the woods in Dhamapur and it’s picturesque locales are brilliantly captured visually. Guys we have natural beauty very much near to us in this part of Maharashtra!
In the midst of this natural beauty, Parth sees a beautiful girl Chhabi (Anagha Atul) and clicks several pics of her amid the natural backdrops and mysterious surroundings which could be award winning photographs. His work is done.
Curiously, the girl remains unseen in the photographs to others including of his close friends nor to his girlfriend — yet she is visible only to him and that’s where the mystery begins. That’s all about the story of this suspense thriller.
Though the premise and execution is excellently executed that evokes intrigue and curiosity, particularly with the entry of Bhaskar (Makarand Deshpande) who sees the girl in Parth’s pictures. There onwards the narration becomes average until the time of unfolding of the suspense. Sameer Dharmadhikari’s presence further heightens the edginess. It is Makarand Deshpande and Sameer Dharmadhikari’s characters that shoulder the climax.
Advait Masurkar’s story and screenplay could have been slicker, that is balanced by Rohan Madkaikar’s cinematography. It could have come out better with the edgy climax that lacked sophistication. Debutant Dhruv Chheda is endearing and looks promising, Anagha Atul is apt as the intriguing girl, Srushti Bahekar as Parth’s chirpy girlfriend are fine in their parts. Makarand Deshpande as the rusty wandering drifter and Sameer Dharmadhikari as the sophisticated lensman are major contributors to the film.
Chhabi has the suspense, but tighter cuts and slicker pacing could have made it sharper and truly gripping.
Cast of Chhabi:
Dhruv Chheda as Parth
Srushti Bahekar as Vedika (Parth’s girlfriend)
Anagha Atul as Chhabi (the mysterious girl)
Makarand Deshpande as Bhaskar (retired photographer)
Sameer Dharmadhikari as Vardhaan Pathak (Curator of the Photography contest)
Shubhangi Gokhale – Parth’s mother
Rajan Bhise – Parth’s father
Sanjay Kulkarni – Rajaram (Parth’s uncle)
Apurva Kavade – Parth’s cousin sister
Leena Pandit
Dnyanesh Dabhane
Rohit Lad
Credits of Chhabi:
Produced by – Jaya Talakshi Chheda
Production Houses – KK Films Creations, Oops Digital Entertainment
Director: Advait Masurkar
DOP: Rohan Madkaikar
Editor: Ajoy Deshmukh
Music: Rohan Rohan
BGM: Aditya Bedekar
Choreography: Rahul Thombre
Art Director: Anil Wath
