Can a slap from a husband enough reason to seek divorce? Point to ponder till you watch the Anubhav Sinha (Mulk, Article 15) directorial Thappad. “Bas itnisi baath?” as the tag line of the film not so furtively asks! The ‘victim’ of the slap is a Delhi home maker Amu- the central character ably enacted by Tapsee Pannu. The story is about the reaction to the solitary slap from her immediate family and society at large, conditioned by the embedded patriarchal beliefs v/s the stunned wife’s resolve not to take it as a matter to be sneezed at. There is no male bashing here and hubby who raises the hand against his wifey is not a typical Indian husband of MCP category familiarised by Bollywood. He is not a drunkard or womaniser and it was still his salad days of wife- beating! The film powerfully conveys that just one deviance is enough to call halts on male chauvinism.
Thappad benefits from a well written screenplay and a bunch of very good actors. Anubhav Sinha and Tapsee have a lot to be proud about this engaging film. ‘No means no’ is the famous Big B dialogue from the film Pink which exhorted gents to back off from a lady who says ‘no’ to the first advance. Thappad will add to the armour in the fight of the fairer sex against marauding males at home who should think twice before the itching for a slap over takes their over stretched hands.. Ladies are advised to coax their partners to the nearest hall to watch this ‘Thappad’ on the toxic male psyche. 3.5/5
Kristian 3/1/2020 3:43:31 PM
Great review, Vish! I shall have to slot in a Bollywood film review at some point, I have been encouraged to enough times!
Anu 2/28/2020 10:04:28 PM
Great❤️