Andhadhun Review - The Bloody Brilliant Film Of The Year

Suhansid Srikanth

Sriram Raghavan's Andhadhun starts with a slide that reads.. "What is life? It all depends on the liver!". And then we see a small sequence of a hunter trying to shoot a rabbit. We don't get anything of what it tries to convey.. but only at the end it makes an insane comeback to connect with the film. Andhadhun is a terrific study for Hitchcock's famous 'Audience know - Characters don't know' theory of suspense. It doesn't just follows or obeys it but runs a rip roaring rollercoaster out of it.

At one side, there is deliberate comedy. Like an amusingly hilarious scene where Akash (Ayushmann Khurrana) plays piano with no reaction despite watching a murder being hidden in front of him. And then, there are so many subtle pass overs! Like where he looks at the mirror and checks his hair as he walks with his girlfriend (Radhika Apte). The film's uber cool way of handling its thrill and suspense constantly puts you on edge of the seat!

Till one point of the film, you feel you are watching a big 'Is he blind or Is he not' play that's gonna tease you with one final reveal. But it gets sorted in the middle. Once the second half kicks in.. it rushes into a thriller that's superlatively unpredictable. The final part is a knockout! I couldn't think of another theater experience where the entire audience were this invested and routed for the 'What's next' in a film!

Ayushmann Khurrana as a blind musician (?) is brilliant. The humour he evokes is not just physical.. but even in the very thought with every scene. So is Tabu! Apart from being convincingly believable as a witchy mistress.. her persona adds so much to the part!

Amit Trivedi's Goanish soundtrack sets a whacky flavour to the entire film! It keeps you hooked. The usage of the film's tracks along with popular old Bollywood numbers takes the narrative forward. Cinematography by K.U.Mohanan deserves a special mention for keeping it all low key for a film that can be super flashy. You hardly notice the gimmicks yet it all blew your mind! And that sets the film way too superior than the films of this kind!

The high that film delivers is infectious. Without giving much spoilers.. I can vouch that this is the film that will put you in a jawdropping awe for 2+ hours! You can blindly trust my words on that!

Bottomline

Andhadhun is that one Hindi film that you should not miss on big screens. This insanely crazy thriller from Sriram Raghavan redefines the genre like a Boss!

Rating : 4.5/5