The world is just healing from the impact of one of the deadliest viruses in recent times and the memories are still pretty fresh. So, Anubhav Sinha’s attempt with Bheed is commendable. The movie showcases thousands of migrants going back to their villages on foot post the Covid curfew announcement. From cycling to being stuffed in trucks, trollies, or any other available vehicles, people were desperate to get back home. But the harsh reality loses its impact in the storytelling with too many great ideas tied together loosely. Here is our review of Bheed starring Rajkummar Rao, Bhumi Pednekar, Dia Mirza, Ashutosh Rana, Kritika Kamra, and Pankaj Kapur.

The chaos, misinformation, and mishandling

The early days of the outbreak were chaotic and messy as there was so much misinformation about the disease. People were struggling to get past checkpoints to reach home. Anubhav Sinha’s Bheed captures this mishandling and chaos pretty well and brings back memories of the tough times and the panic they brought. With trucks and buses full of people trying to go back to their villages, many fell sick and there was a lack of resources to handle the situation. And on top of that, the government wasn’t passing any orders to help the migrants travel safely. It is painful to watch people suffer for basic necessities like food and water and be made to wait endlessly.

From a mother pleading to get her daughter back to a politician trying to cross the border and a watchman turning violent to feed his family, Bheed brings a lot of emotions to the table. The inspector in charge Surya (Rajkummar Rao) must play fair without abusing the power of his position. He is done with the police abusing their power and spraying people with pesticides in order to sanitise them. So, he does everything in his control to step up and stop the crowd from going out of control.

Did Bheed really have to be shot in black and white?

Narrating a tragedy with a black-and-white lens does add value to a film. According to Anubhav Sinha, the choice of black and white is supposed to depict the striking similarities between the Covid exodus and the Partition in 1947. However, this point seems to get lost for the average viewer. Bheed could have been shot in colour and it may have been more engaging then. While some parts of the movie made sense in black and white, the rest of it felt a bit darker than it had to be.

The cast does a great job of justifying their characters

Bheed has an amazing star cast and every character plays their role to perfection. Rajkummar Rao as Surya, a Dalit officer in charge, does a commendable job. And at this point in his career, we expect Rao to be nothing short of spectacular. He shines even more due to his co-actor Bhumi who plays Renu, a doctor helping Surya with the crowds. Along with her, Ashutosh Rana and Aditya Shrivastav, Rao’s fellow policemen hit the mark with their solid performances as well. Pankaj Kapur as the desperate father who will do anything to feed his family is extremely relatable. Dia Mirza as the helpless mother showcases the entitlement of the upper classes perfectly. And Kritika Kamra as the news reporter also leaves a mark with her performance.

Anubhav Sinha’s effort is definitely worth the praise he’s getting. Bheed does strike a chord but doesn’t leave as big an impact as one would expect out of a movie like this. Bheed is out now in theatres.

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