Bhakshak movie review: The Bhumi Pednekar film is saddled with basic story-telling and zero nuance

Small-time video journalist Vaishali Singh (Pednekar), aided by her camera-man Bhaskar Sinha (Mishra) come upon a report which raises red flags about a shelter home for girls in Munnawarpur (a thinly-disguised name for the real place). Vaishali’s initial reluctance to delve deeper gives way to a determined investigation, which consists mainly of showing up at state-run shelters in different parts of the state and asking uncomfortable questions.

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Everything points to the vile Bansi Sahu (Srivastava), who runs the home with the help of an equally ghastly trio– a female warden-type who also preys upon the girls and a couple of ruthless men who keep the girls in check, and disposes off their bodies when they become inconvenient. No spoilers these, because this is exactly how the real life case played out. A top female cop (Tamhankar) is helpful, but only up to a point, leaving Vaishali to do all the heavy lifting.

Watch | The trailer of Bhakshak starring Bhumi Pednekar

The focus on Vaishali’s personal life, with an angry husband (Sharma) berating her for staying out late, shows us how hard it is for women to do what their heart desires. But while it does provide some relief from the direness of the tale, it also lengthens the film needlessly. Pednekar is earnest, and works at making her character believable, but is saddled with basic story-telling, and zero nuance. Breaking the fourth wall, and shaking a finger at us for not caring, is not always the best way of making yourself heard.

Bhakshak movie cast: Bhumi Pednekar, Sanjay Mishra, Aditya Srivastava, Sai Tamhankar, Surya Sharma
Bhakshak movie director: Pulkit
Bhakshak movie rating: 2 stars