Movie: Jayeshbhai Jordaar

Release Date: 13 May 2022

Cast: Ranveer Singh, Shalini Pandey, Boman Irani, Ratna Pathak Shah, and so on 

Rating: 3.5/5

Editor: Namrata Rao

Music: Ankit Balhara, Sanchit Balhara, Vishal Dadlani , and Shekhar Ravjiani

Art Director: Amrish Patange, Dayanidhi Patturajan, and Tanish Rao

Producers: Aditya Chopra and Maneesh Sharma

Directed by: Divyang Thakkar

Writers: Anckur Chaudhry and Divyang Thakkar

Jayeshbhai Jordaar Review: An irrepressible Jayeshbhai Jordaar plays with continuous brilliance. Ranveer Singh isn’t a hunk who struts around the village attracting unwanted attention. He is, in fact, the polar opposite. He has a knack for blending into the background.

Story of Jayeshbhai Jordaar

A timid and powerless husband (Ranveer Singh as Jayeshbhai) must turn to guerilla warfare to defend his wife Mudra (Shalini Pandey) and their 9-year-old precocious daughter from the wrath of his patriarchal parents in a regressive, imaginary village of Gujarat (Boman Irani and Ratna Pathak Shah). Can he have the fortitude to empower his village’s women and resist the beti-nahi-beta chahiye samaaj?

Review of Jayeshbhai Jordaar

Jayeshbhai is incapable of harming a fly to save his life, but he has a heart that yearns to do and be better than the misogynistic and chauvinistic atmosphere in which he was raised. When his father (the village sarpanch) accuses the girls and their fragrant soaps of enticing men into eve-teasing, he is horrified. Even as his tyrannical parents curse their ghunghat-clad bahu for not giving them a waaris, he decides to be a bystander despite witnessing the glaring unfairness (heir). They even persuade her to take her unborn child’s sex determination test.

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The men of the village, self-proclaimed keepers of culture, believe it is their responsibility to police the ghagra paltan (women) of the hamlet and ensure they have no voice. “If girls don’t learn English, they won’t obtain husbands,” the elderly warn. Is Jayeshbhai strong enough to defy these age-old diktats and superstitions?

Divyang Thakkar, a debut writer-director, uses humour and satire to address social concerns such as gender stereotypes, inequity, and female foeticide. The intention is laudable, but the script’s childish execution and sloppy writing make it impossible for even Ranveer to save it.

Sharmaji Namkeen, a recent film, likewise dealt with gender constructs with a splash of humour, but never trivialised tragedy. Jayeshbhai fails to convey the gravity of the topics it confronts because it is more preoccupied with providing bizarre pleasure. However, in order to accomplish this, the writing must be clever, which is not the case here. Nothing has an impression, whether it’s domestic abuse, victim shaming, or female child empowerment since the humorous punches rarely hit. Ranveer’s pappi (kiss) monologue occurs at such an inopportune point in the film that it causes accidental laughing. 

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When a single humorous moment is prolonged too far, it loses its allure. Pretentious and superficial are also the setting and accents. Given the plot, you wait for moments that will tug at your heartstrings, but they never arrive. All you see is Ranveer dressed up in gaudy designer gear and attempting to pass it off as country chic. When it comes to performances and screen presence, the actor is a firecracker, but the writer puts out his fire. Despite the creative flaws, Ranveer’s energy and unwavering desire to entertain keeps you hoping till the very end. The original Preeti (Shalini Pandey) from Arjun Reddy reprises her submissive role here.

For a long time, alpha guys have been idolized in Hindi films. Through his shy yet resolute hero, Divyang seeks to flip that script and confront false bravado. He also tries to lighten up on serious problems, but the lackluster script drags this social comedy down.