Jigra review: Alia Bhatt emulates Amitabh Bachchan's intensity; Vasan Bala's thriller won't let you down | Bollywood

A song titled “I got the fire” plays in the background when Satya (played by Alia Bhatt) decides to use fire to help her brother Ankurs (played by Vedang Raina) escape from prison. In another scene there is a reference to Amitabh Bachchan, which immediately makes it plausible that even a petite Alia can do a lot on screen if he can defeat an entire gang of thugs. (Also read: Jigra Twitter Reactions: Fans think 'no one can come close to Alia Bhatt', praise Vasan Bala for 'emotional' film)

A supremely confident film, 'Jigra' makes a serious claim to be one of Hindi cinema's best thrillers where emotions take center stage. It revolves around Satya, who has been an orphan since a young age along with her little brother Ankur. She is extremely protective of him and lives with a distant, wealthy relative, where she works as his employee. Ankur is an engineer and proposes a plan to her uncle, who agrees to invest with the unspoken clause that his son will be a partner. They travel to Hanshi Dao (a fictional country, but similar to North Korea because at one point later in the story Satya notes that there is also a penalty for laughing and crying) to meet another investor and are joined Caught by police for speeding. Ankur's cousin is found to be in possession of drugs and the two are immediately jailed. The punishment for drug possession in this country is death by electrical execution. Ankur is accused by his cousin and his lawyer and now he has three months left until his execution. Satya immediately goes to Hanshi Dao – but gets no legal help. You know she won't let her little brother die. What she does next is the rest of the story.

What works for Jigra

It's an exciting thriller that hits the right tone. Vasan Bala, the director, has absolute control over the pacing and oh man, it is delicious. The setting switches from India to Hanshi Dao and it is buttery smooth. No annoying shifts. There is a slight monotony in the second half as the escape plan of Satya, Bhatia (played by Manoj Pahwa) and Mithu (Rahul Ravindran) suffers setbacks. It might be a bit difficult for some viewers to keep up with the many things that are going on, but Vasan himself has taken care of that with dialogue. Bhatia remarks to Mithu as they discuss the jailbreak plan, “Yeh bauhaut complex hai, isko aasaan bana,” to which Mithu replies, “Yeh masala movie thodi hai, yeh complex hai.” Masterpiece!

Also have a tissue handy. Because if you're not sitting on the edge of your seat, you'll shed a tear. The bond between brother and sister is emotional from the start and is heightened even further with extremely compelling performances.

How the performances perform

That brings us to the acting department. Alia is a special talent who proves she has a lot of 'jigra' – she co-produced the film. Alia is vulnerable and bold (synonymous with Jigra) in her desperation to save her brother as time runs out. She has captivated you. And then there is the chemistry she shares with Vedang. He pays her a wonderful compliment with his relaxed manner. This guy has the face and also the acting skills. Manoj Pahwa is a surprise package and will make you smile as soon as he appears on screen. Kudos to the creators for not reducing him to a comic relief. His role actually carries a lot of weight.

And kudos to Achint Thakkar whose background music keeps you hooked.

In summary, Jigra is a well-made thriller that is a bit predictable at times, but doesn't let you down. Satya’s “Jigra” makes you wish that you too were under her protection.