Bheed takes us through the initial days of lockdown during the covid-19 pandemic, where migrant workers got stranded in various parts of the country due to the borders getting sealed. The fear of not belonging anywhere and the struggle to reach back home. How caste and class still dictate the terms. Several characters ranging from the powerful to powerless, privileged to underprivileged, go through the same commotion while stuck at a checkpost. Bheed is the story of the largest migration India saw since Independence. Dialogue might be removed, the fact remains.
The film began with the group of migrant workers walking on the railway tracks and eventually resting over it as their bodies gave away, walking all the while. Needless to say, what actually happens to the poor souls. Anubhav Sinha sets the tone of the film right away and it wasn't going to be an easy watch. The highlight is how the narrative is woven around the caste and class division. The characters are straight out of real life and it effectively depicts the darkest phase of Incredible India post Independence.
Rajkummar Rao's Surya Kumar Singh Tikas and Bhumi Pedneker's Dr. Renu Sharma bring in the perfect balance to the narrative. Caste plays the main role here and to see how she empowers him, to overcome his insecurities and face the harsh reality he grew up / has to live with. As the in-charge of the newly created checkpost, the journey of Tikas to realizing what it takes to do the right thing is impressive.
The other characters that stood out was that of Dia Mirza's Geetanjali and her car driver Kanhaiya, where her self centered behavior gets shown a mirror. Then there is Pankaj Tripathi's Balram Trivedi which stood out for the most part, as the naive upper caste guy believing WhatsApp rumors and struggling to take care of his people. His character arc from being a casteist guy to a rebel, needed a better closure in the final act.
Yes, it was the final act that was underwhelming as it went too filmy. Even then, there were moments that had a lasting impact. Amidst all this, the character of a daughter cycling her alcohilic father around, probably the one sadly brave story during the covid days which I would never forget and there is nothing else but to feel numb, whenever the character appeared on screen. Bheed is not the kind of film which is easy to review as the stories it narrates, is just the nightmare we witnessed day after day for two years.
The film began with the group of migrant workers walking on the railway tracks and eventually resting over it as their bodies gave away, walking all the while. Needless to say, what actually happens to the poor souls. Anubhav Sinha sets the tone of the film right away and it wasn't going to be an easy watch. The highlight is how the narrative is woven around the caste and class division. The characters are straight out of real life and it effectively depicts the darkest phase of Incredible India post Independence.
Rajkummar Rao's Surya Kumar Singh Tikas and Bhumi Pedneker's Dr. Renu Sharma bring in the perfect balance to the narrative. Caste plays the main role here and to see how she empowers him, to overcome his insecurities and face the harsh reality he grew up / has to live with. As the in-charge of the newly created checkpost, the journey of Tikas to realizing what it takes to do the right thing is impressive.
The other characters that stood out was that of Dia Mirza's Geetanjali and her car driver Kanhaiya, where her self centered behavior gets shown a mirror. Then there is Pankaj Tripathi's Balram Trivedi which stood out for the most part, as the naive upper caste guy believing WhatsApp rumors and struggling to take care of his people. His character arc from being a casteist guy to a rebel, needed a better closure in the final act.
Yes, it was the final act that was underwhelming as it went too filmy. Even then, there were moments that had a lasting impact. Amidst all this, the character of a daughter cycling her alcohilic father around, probably the one sadly brave story during the covid days which I would never forget and there is nothing else but to feel numb, whenever the character appeared on screen. Bheed is not the kind of film which is easy to review as the stories it narrates, is just the nightmare we witnessed day after day for two years.