The kind of movies (most of them) that have been releasing on the OTT platform due to the pandemic situation was making one lose faith in the movie making abilities of Bollywood hoi-poloi with no-brainers like Radhe and co. unleashed on us. Mimi film review…
Had practically given up on these films, which led to disillusionment building up, it made me wonder are we making films for over a hundred years and here’s where we have reached dishing out illogical movies viewing which even the frontbenchers would cringe.
However amid all this gloom there is a silver lining in the form of Mimi. It is like a breath of fresh air in the out laying stench. Not only are we exploring a new topic on which some grim/overtly emotional movies have been made but this one is different. Not only is the story good but also well made (could have easily gone down the dumps).
Great screenplay. Tight close ups of Kriti and the three flying birds tattoo just below her neckline. It caters to emotions, humour (not slap stick), good acting, some genuine firangs (not the usual Tom Alter variety). The movie gives certain subtle messages and unabashedly discusses some taboo issues albeit discreetly.
Let’s talk about the starcast first, so let’s start with the title role holder itself i.e. Kriti Sanon aka Mimi, she appears tall, slim, vivacious and in her element and keeps you engaged with her presence whenever on screen, a meaty role to which she does justice. Then let’s talk about the current OTT czar i.e. Pankaj Tripathi who underplays his driver cum agent cum guide role to perfection without overacting.
Mimi’s parents i.e. Manoj Pahwa and Supriya Pathak, well they are veterans and act like one, one scene in particular stands out where Supriya wrings her daughter’s neck to find out who is the father, only one tiny bit of complaint with her is that she is unable to fully wiggle out of her khichdi image and the Rajasthani twang adopted by all the actors is a bit forced and a give away. Sai Tamhankar as Mimi’s friend and understudy is good has come a long way since her Hunterrr days. The foreign couple, especially the girl Summer acts naturally and gracefully, thus summing up the acting department.
There are some remarkable scenes which stand out and breakaway from thr run-of-the-mill stuff that we have been subjected to in the Bollywood movies lately. Like at the height of a tense emotional scene where her neck is being wrung by her mother and her father accusing her of impropriety she shows the finger towards Tripathi as the child’s father thus dissipating the tension and converting it to a scene of consternation and comedy. Secondly when Mimi confronts Summer the firang mother when the couple comeback to claim their child is picturised very sensitively. Then for some comic relief we have Tripathi convincing people about being the father of Mimi’s child which no one wants to believe but has to.
Some lessons to be learnt about surrogacy- never trust firangs as they may run off at the drop of the hat leaving you with an advisory to abort or if you want keep the child, an ironclad agreement admissible universally is important. Take 50% of your cash upfront lest they run away. Need to be under care of better doctors and equipments lest you are shortchanged by questionable test results, never make videos of your child who stands out in the crowd and upload them of Facebook lest their firang parents come knocking on your door.
Jokes apart it is a good subject, handled well, certainly refreshing and surely entertaining. At long last a movie that can be recommended is trending on Netflix would have seen it in theatres to get the feel of a small Rajasthani town where it is set in.
– Review by PAWAN GUPTA
Cast of Mimi:
Kriti Sanon as Mimi Rathore
Pankaj Tripathi as Bhanupratap Pandey
Sai Tamhankar as Shama (Mimi’s best friend)
Manoj Pahwa as Mansingh Rathore (Mimi’s father)
Supriya Pathak as Shobha Rathore (Mimi’s mother)
Evelyn Edwards as Summer
Aidan Whytock as John
Jaya Bhattacharya as Dr Asha Desai
Jacob Smith as Mimi’s foster son (Summer and John’s biological son)
Atmaja Pandey as Rekha Pandey (Bhanu’s wife)
Nutan Surya as Kaikeyi Pandey, Bhanu’s mother
Credits of Mimi:
Produced by Dinesh Vijan, Jio Studios
Production companies – Maddock Films, Jio Studios
Directed by Laxman Utekar
Story & Screenplay by Laxman Utekar, Rohan Shankar
Dialogues – Rohan Shankar
Based on Mala Aai Vhhaychy! by Samruddhi Porey
Cinematography Akash Agarwal
Edited by Manish Pradhan
Music by A. R. Rahman, Himanshu Jaykar
Distributed by Jio Cinema, Netflix
Running time 133 minutes