Sonam Kapoor's latest film, based on the life of braveheart Pan Am flight attendant Neerja Bhanot has hit the theatres and the critics have given it a thumbs up. Here's what others had to say about the film...
Film: Neerja
Starring: Sonam Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, Yogendra Tikku, Shekhar Ravjiani
Directed by: Ram Madhvani
Rating: **** (Four stars)
WHAT’S IT ABOUT:
Courage – it’s a virtue everyone possesses, but only a few choose to use it. Neerja Bhanot was one of them and that’s what makes her life so remarkable. Ram Madhvani’s film, named after the protagonist, is an intensely woven tale of the young airhostess who saved hundreds of lives when her flight was hijacked by terrorists in 1986. After walking out of a bad and abusive marriage, Neerja (Sonam) is taking a shot at rediscovering life through her work at Pan Am (which she “loves”) and modelling.
A few days before her 23rd birthday, her flight gets hijacked in Karachi, putting the lives of all the passengers at risk. As her distraught parents (Azmi and Tikku) cope with the situation back home in India, Neerja is stepping beyond her own limits, displaying levels of bravery she herself didn’t know existed within her. The film recaptures the drama inside the aircraft that continued for over 17 hours, in which Neerja sacrificed her life. She was posthumously awarded the Ashoka Chakra, the country’s highest award for bravery and valour.
Read our full dna review of Neerja here.
And here's what other reviewers from the country had to say about the Sonam starrer? Did they like it? Or did they pan it? Here's what their responses were.
Indian Express:
Neerja movie review: Sonam Kapoor makes us believe she is, was, Neerja
The atmosphere of dread and violence is created well, for the most part. We see the hijackers brutally put down any hint of resistance. We see the terrified passengers cowering in their seats. We see the crew being cowed into submission, being jabbed repeatedly by AK 47s. And we see the exact moment when Neerja draws upon her memories of being defeated in a past life, and reaching out for steely resilience: most importantly, we see Kapoor do this, believably.
Listen: Neerja’s last flight announcement before Pan Am Flight 73 got hijacked. The question was always going to be, can Kapoor, who has always played itty-bitty ditsy roles before (with patchy results in a string of others), carry off that demanding role? Short answer again : yes.
Read full review here.
Catch News:
Neerja review: A near-flawless exploration of courage in the face of darkness
As a reviewer, it's common practice to go home and temper your immediate opinions. One tries to analyze the intangible, and often gets caught up being loyal to the duty of "criticism". What comes out on paper is then a studied, joy-killing dissection of personal expression.
But Neerja isn't a movie I want to look back on and think about. I suspect it's meant to be felt - and reacted to - in real time. It doesn't matter if I discover tiny mistakes later. I feel shaken, and moved, and inspired right now. And occasionally, the first feeling while walking out the hall is the only analysis required, and the only instinct that matters.
Read full review here.
NDTV:
Defying every norm laid down in the mainstream Bollywood rule-book, Neerja coaxes a riveting two-hour drama out of a real-life tale of extraordinary courage. For those old enough to remember how the hijacking of the 1986 Pan Am flight 73 panned out, the details are obviously all in the public domain. Yet, the need to bring the story of Neerja Bhanot to the big screen cannot be questioned, especially from the point of view of a younger audience. In this shrill era of arrogant, aggressive nationalism, the qualities of genuine humanism that this spirited film celebrates deserve to be brought to the fore and embraced. Neerja not only places a woman at its centre, it also showcases the pluck of a flight attendant who makes no distinction between nationalities when her passengers face a grave threat.
Read full review here.
Hindustan Times:
This is the Sonam Kapoor we’ve been waiting for
Neerja is a milestone in Sonam Kapoor’s career. Not just because it’s a good film, but because she carries it entirely on her shoulder. She looks earnest, scared, benevolent and bold, all at the same time. You should see her in the scene where a terrorist frisks her: She aces it with a panache seldom seen in Bollywood. Shabana Azmi is very impressive as Neerja’s mother, her grip over emotional scenes are very visible. The other person who deserves applause is Yogendra Tiku who plays Neerja’s father. The emotions reflect so swiftly on his face that you can see your dear one there.
Read full review here.
The Hindu:
Neerja is best watched if in mood for a good cry
The beginning, with its one-the-move, jerky camera lends a sense of urgency to the proceedings but can also leave some of viewers like yours truly struck with motion sickness. In the parallel unfolding narratives Madhvani establishes the context — Neerja and her happy family in Navjeevan Society and the evil terrorists in Tariq Road in Karachi and Lyari. The bursting of balloons in the party on the one hand and the bombs on the other side becomes too pat a correspondence. Even within the plane Madhvani keeps the parallel tracks going though with Neerja’s marital abuse in focus; a terrorism of another kind.
Read full review here.
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