Review: '7 Khoon Maaf' is a bloody good film

Film: 7 Khoon Maaf (A)
Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Vivaan Shah, John Abraham, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Naseeruddin Shah, Irrfan Khan, Anu Kapoor, Usha Uthup, Aleksandr Dyachenko
Director: Vishal Bhardwaj
Rating: ***½

“I will kill him and drink his blood,” joked a salt-and-pepper-haired Susanna in the promos of 7 Khoon Maaf.

Okay, so we all know the story of Susanna And Her Seven Husbands, a shortstory by Ruskin Bond. And when Vishal Bhardwaj (sometimes called India’s Quentin Tarantino) decided to bring Susanna Anna Marie Johannes to life on the silver screen, there was bound to be added interest in the woman (Chopra in the film) who kills six of her husbands one after the other over a span of 35-odd years.

Who is the seventh husband/victim you may ask? Well, I’m still trying to work that one out. You might want to watch the film to draw your own conclusion.

7 Khoon Maaf unfolds through the point of view of Arun Kumar (Vivaan Shah), a servant boy in Susanna’s father’s house. Young Arun is in awe of, and love with, Susanna, whom he worships for getting him admitted in school and changing his life forever. Apart from Arun, Susanna has a brigade of faithful servants, a butler and Maggie Aunty, who are also her partners in crime.

Major Edwin Rodrigues (Neil) is Susanna’s first husband and casualty, one-legged, arrogant, and a doubting Thomas.

Rodrigues is followed by junkie rock star Jimmy (John), masochistic poet Wasiullah ‘Musafir’ Khan (Khan), Russian double agent Nikolai Vronsky, opportunist Viagra-popping Inspector Kimatlal (Kapoor) and, finally, the bankrupt naturist Dr Madhosudhan Tarafdar (Naseeruddin Shah).

Susanna is nasty, but you can’t help but sympathise with the girl for landing one wrong man after another. Chopra is undoubtedly one of the best actresses we have in the Hindi film industry, and here she is clearly Bhardwaj’s muse. Wonder who else could have pulled off a better Susanna.

Bhardwaj’s screenplay tries to stick to the book, but the limitations of film are blatant as transitions do not always convey the passage of time. The make-up tries to cover up those shortcomings but falls short nonetheless. The transformation of Susanna from an attractive young girl to an old and haggard woman, seducing a young man whom she helped raise as a boy, is eerie yet done to perfection by Bhardwaj.

One woman on a murder spree sounds enough to give you the chills, but still the thrill factor remains elusive. Chopra’s acting skills cover most of the flaws in the screenplay, but Vivaan Shah steals her thunder. Naseer's son is clearly a talent to watch out for.

Bhardwaj gives each husband just about enough of a lifetime (literally), while keeping 7 Khoon Maaf essentially Susanna’s property. Bhardwaj falters in places, probably owing to the limitations of adapting a book onto film. Sympathies apart, none of Susanna’s reasons for murder are compelling enough.

Neil, John, Khan, Kapoor, Dyachenko and Naseer play their parts well, never returning to haunt the film once they are dead and gone. Ruskin Bond appears in a cameo towards the end.

Bhardwaj, who doubles up as the music director for the film, knows well the dark moods he wants to convey. His background score is foot tapping and creates the illusion of involvement in the script for the audience. Bekaran's Sufi feel and Darling's seductive tone are particularly memorable.

All in all, no words can fully express the wicked experience of 7 Khoon Maaf. Go catch it for some ‘bloody’ good performances and a great storyline.