Shakuntala Devi: An Overdramatic Average Film with Good, Honest Performances

 By Avik Basak

“Drama or nothing, we Indians are like that only,” Shakuntala Devi tells this to her Spanish associate to explain her eccentric personality. This statement is also a perfect clue to the audiences as to what to expect from this film. A biopic whose brilliance gets somewhat dampened by the overdose of melodrama. Maybe that is the way the genius mathematician’s life is supposed to be captured on the celluloid due to her own flair for drama but even with that condition in consideration, the film manages to exceed it by a fair notch.

Based on the life of math genius Shakuntala Devi who was nicknamed “the human computer”, the film tells the story of Shakuntala, a little girl in the 1930’s Bangalore who is bestowed with genius-level intellect in maths and how she, without any formal education whatsoever, becomes the legendary mathematician we know. The events in Devi’s life and her journey have been interestingly woven in a narrative that keeps us invested until the end. The way she rises to prominence, amassing appreciations from everyone internationally, and creating records after records really make for an interesting watch. It is the dramatic portrayal of the plot, which although is undoubtedly an inseparable part of the experience which a film based on such an eccentric personality (according to the film) aims to provide, somehow becomes a bit too much to digest. Moreover, after a point of time, the story of the mathematician somehow takes a backseat to give more prominence to the story of the failed mother.

The best thing about this film is its performances led by its leading lady, Vidya Balan who is in a sparkling form here. Whether it is the young Devi who is rash enough to point a gun at her lover who betrayed her or the aged mother who has to deal with the hatred of her daughter, Balan just nails the role. Her performance is equally matched by Sanya Malhotra who plays Devi’s daughter Anupama Banerji and delivers another outstanding performance. It is the chemistry of these leading ladies that makes the film interesting where it would not have seemed interesting otherwise. The men of the film- Jisshu Sengupta as Devi’s husband as Paritosh Banerji, Amit Sadh as Anupama’s husband Ajay Abhaya Kumar and Italian actor Luca Calvani as Devi’s Spanish associate and friend Javier does well in their limited screen time. The scene where Anupama’s parents try to behave ‘normally’ on her instruction to impress Ajay’s parents is just delightful and one of the best bits the film has to offer. Prakash Belawadi and Sheeba Chaddha who play the roles of Shakuntala’s father and her landlady in London respectively also do well in their short appearances.

Director Anu Menon does an okay job behind the camera and, along with her co-writers Nayanika Mahtani and Ishita Moitra, does a fair enough job with the script but it could have been a lot better as there are easily noticeable drawbacks. Sachin-Jigar’s music is fine enough but there are not any tracks to remember. On the other hand, Karan Kulkarni’s score is quite good as it helps in the unfolding of the drama in many of the scenes.

Overall, Shakuntala Devi is an average film about a brilliant personality that relies heavily on its drama. But it is the honest performances of its key players that are the soul of the film and make it worth a watch.

3.3 Stars Out of 5 from Me…