Yashowardhan Mishra’s debut movie Kathal- A Jackfruit Mystery is a light-hearted comedy about two missing jackfruits. The kathals are the prized possessions of Mr Pateria (Vijay Raaz) and he has the whole police force looking for them. And even though the movie seems vague at first, the simple storyline uncovers complex matters. Here’s our review of Kathal starring Sanya Malhotra, Vijay Raaz, and Rajpal Yadav in lead roles.
The kathal ka achaar that leads to the whole bawaal
Mr Pateria is a local politician trying to get a ticket in the upcoming elections. And his weapon of choice to win this war is a special kathal ka achaar. And these are not just any jackfruits, they are Malaysia’s Uncle Hong’s jackfruits. But Pateria gets into serious trouble when he notices that the two kathals growing in his garden have been stolen. Wasting no time, he forces the police to abandon every other case and work on the big kathal mystery. Leading the task force and the case is Inspector Mahima (Sanya Malhotra) who is treated poorly because of her caste. But she never lets that, or a fame-hungry reporter, get in her way.
While the whole team is busy trying to find the kathal, Mahima meets the gardener of the Pateria family who was recently fired. And upon investigating, she finds out that the gardener’s daughter has been missing for the past few days. So, Mahima cleverly turns the narrative around and makes everyone believe that the missing girl stole the kathal to get everyone to look for her instead. But does Mahima end up finding the girl or the jackfruits, or does she discover something far more serious?
Kathal is a light-hearted comedy with solid characters
Kathal breaks away from the usual Bollywood comedies and gives us waves of laughter and a few lessons. The storyline is simple but speaks of casteism and human trafficking without being too dramatic. And every character brings a fun element to the storyline. Vijay Raaz, as Pateria, is simply hilarious as the fussy and skeptical politician. Sanya Malhotra’s Inspector Mahima is a solid character who has a no-nonsense attitude and keeps everyone in check. And Rajpal Yadav, as Anuj the journalist, plays his role to perfection making sure the audience enjoys a good laugh. The talented supporting cast also includes Anant Joshi, Neha Saraf, Brijendra Kala, Govind Panday, and Gurpal Singh.
Can you watch Kathal with your family?: Yes, you can absolutely watch this movie with all members of your family.
Kathal is now streaming on Netflix.
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