A Wednesday! - Movie Review

Published: July 25, 2010

By EKTA R. GARG

Starring Naseeruddin Shah, Anupam Kher, Jimmy Shergill

In an age when Bollywood directors try to give their audiences all the wealth and glamour those audiences don’t possess in real life, occasionally a director will make a film that mirrors the reality of India’s moviegoers. A Wednesday! is one such film. Made by debutant director Neeraj Pandey, the movie is a cinematic follow-up to the real-life July 11, 2006 Mumbai train bombings.

Naseeruddin Shah turns in a powerful performance as “a stupid common man”—his character’s explanation for his role in the bizarre bomb threats that plague Mumbai on an ordinary Wednesday. Anupam Kher matches Shah in delivery as Prakash Rathod, the Mumbai police commissioner forced to deal with the threats Shah calls in to the station. Rathod is going about his business on that day when he gets the call that bombs have been placed throughout the city. He pulls together a team of some of his best tech people and officers to try to beat the man whose confidence and knowledge of electronics proves frightening.

Shah’s character is calm and calculating; he knows what he wants and how to get it, and he doesn’t mince words. He informs Rathod that unless four key terrorists in police custody are set free, several bombs will explode in strategic locations. Giving Rathod four hours to orchestrate the release of the terrorists, Shah’s character doesn’t give anyone any wiggle room. Rathod attempts to go through the tried-and-tested methods of locating the bomber and reasoning with him, but to no avail.

As the story takes shape, it slowly becomes evident that this is about more than those four terrorists, and Shah’s character suddenly becomes someone with whom we can all identify and emulate. Someone we all might like to become.

   

This highly acclaimed film was a commercial success. Director Neeraj Pandey doesn’t waste screen time with songs or glitz. He has a story to tell and sticks to it in under two hours. While some of the scenes seem to be trying too hard (note the repeated shots of the computer techs typing away furiously on their laptops), overall Pandey gets his idea across effectively. Jimmy Shergill as an aggressive police officer is impressive. Director Pandey doesn’t give us Shergill’s back story, but we don’t need it to know how good he is at his job. 

A prequel to A Wednesday! is being planned.

A Wednesday! rated Must See.

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