Review: 'Vikalp' offers an interesting option this week

Film: Vikalp (U/A)
Cast: Deepal Shaw, Alok Nath, Chetan Pandit, Nirmal Pandey, Abhijeet Lehiri, Pankaj Berry, Akshay Singh, Kranti Jha
Director: Sachin Karande
Rating: **1/2

Vikalp, according to its makers, stands for everyday choices that demand extraordinary amount of attention and conviction.

What happens when a girl like Rishika Gandhi (Shaw) is faced with such choices? Rishika is a talented hacker but lacks the confidence or self-esteem to make the right choices that could save her life and her career.

A job gone wrong, humiliation by an arrogant senior, and heartbreak drive Rishika to Bangkok in search of a better life. As soon as this damsel lands in videsh, we know she's going to be in distress. After what seems like a dream job at Puyet Software Company, the unsuspecting Rishika faces a world of identity thefts, cyber criminals and terrorist organisations, something she isn't quite prepared for.

Now finding herself in the midst of a web of lies and deceit, every step Rishika takes is crucial to decide her fate. Will she be confident enough to fight it out till the end? Or will she give in to the pressure of the nasty cartel? The second half of Vikalp looks for answers to these questions.

A generous dose of some predictable and many unexpected twists and turns keeps the tempo of Vikalp up. Cinematically, the film does not offer much to write home about, and the screenplay swings between gripping and boring.

In a world where the internet becomes your window to the world, Vikalp takes a hard look at the hacker community that could be snooping on vulnerable you. The film forces you to think about all the information that you put out there in the course of your routine surfing.

Geeky though the protagonist is, the film isn't too heavy on tech jargon and warns the layman about the evil side of technology. Shaw portrays her character in a believable manner, going over-the-top a few times, but leaving a mark nonetheless.

After having appeared in a handful films, most of which bombed at the box office, Shaw's only memorable performances so far were as a woman pushed into pornography in Kalyug and a journalist in A Wednesday. With the de-glam, geeky Rishika, Shaw proves she is an actor worth watching out for.

Vishal Vijay Kumar’s imaginative story and Sachin Karande’s resolute direction spin an intricate web to trap Rishika. Flaws apart, a thrilling plot coupled with some good performances makes Vikalp an interesting watch. No harm in making it your choice this weekend.