Jabariya Jodi

“Devoid of focus and logic and riddled with acting that borders on the shockingly amateurish, the film opts for the pursuit of concentric circles as its favoured narrative mode and ties itself up in countless unseemly knots in the process. The storyline is so convoluted that an attempt to make sense of it would be futile.”

Rating: 1 star | Full review

“After 143 minutes and 30 excruciating seconds, I’m not sure what it’s about… Jabariya Jodi’s haphazard structure and misplaced enthusiasm allows it to be multiple things yet lead to nothing. As a consequence, it’s you who feels held hostage and forced to experience a script that neither has the wit to satirise a prevalent issue nor the sense to focus at the problem on hand.”

Rating: 2 stars | Full review

“Sometimes even bad movies tend to have one or two redeeming factors. But then, there are some that truly test your patience.”

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“Awkward dance between comedy and commentary.”

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“The road to cinematic hell is paved with concepts that must have sounded good on paper… This was material that an efficient, talented team may possibly have expanded into something worthwhile. Instead, writer Sanjeev K Jha’s imagination appears to have gone on vacation after a while… If you really want to know about the business of groom-napping in Bihar, read news reports.”

Rating: 0.5 star | Full review

“Among the many things unique to Bollywood, there’s one trope that’s peculiarly insipid. It involves the protagonist or any key character from a film going through an intense internal conflict which is visible only to the audience as if the character has forged a private relationship with people outside of the film’s universe. For instance, there’d be celebrations around and the protagonist would appear to be woefully disoriented but nobody, absolutely nobody, notices their very visible pain, as they go about their business with utmost normalcy. In Prashant Singh’s Jabariya Jodi… this trope is generously employed.”

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“For a film ostensibly concerned about a woman’s right not to be sold as a piece of property, this is a stunningly tone-deaf piece of writing.”

Rating: stars | Full review

“As the film goes along, confusion gets confounded. Is this a well-meaning social drama, a rom-com, or an actioner?… How about giving these actors more to do, Bollywood?”

Rating: 1 star | Full review