Vedaa

Vedaa, directed by Nikkhil Advani from a screenplay by Aseem Arrora, chooses to explore caste oppression in a gritty fashion without shying away from the harsh reality. However, after a well-constructed first half, the second half of the film all but upends it of its good intentions because it focuses far too much on the hero’s heroism.

Major Abhimanyu Kanwar (John Abraham), is a commando in the POK region. Of course, he combats terrorists single-handedly and goes the extra-judicial mile to deliver justice, which leads him to getting a dishonorable discharge from the army. Abhimanyu then shifts to Barmer district in Rajasthan, where his father-in-law finds him a job as the assistant boxing coach of the local college. Though Abhimanyu works diligently at the college, he remains a misfit. When Vedaa Berwa (Sharvari), a Dalit girl,  requests to learn boxing to protect her family, she is repeatedly thwarted by Suyog (Kshitij Chauhan), the younger brother of village headman, Jitendra Pratap Singh (Abhishek Banerjee). However, her determination impresses Abhimanyu, who takes her under his wing and also finds himself serving as her protector when she and her family become the target of the upper-caste overseers of the village due to her brother falling in love with an upper-caste woman…

That Vedaa deals with caste oppression without shying away from or conflating casteism with classism (which had been the usual modus operandi of Bollywood for quite a while) is admirable. This extends to how Arrora’s screenplay and Advani’s sure-handed direction in the first half slowly meticulously builds up the lawlessness prevalent in Barmer with judicial  delivery under the auspices of a Kangaroo Court led by Jitendra Pratap Singh. An Electronics and  Communication Engineer with some of the largest ownership of land in the countryside under his belt, Singh believes that the caste system is a decree handed down by the gods and one that cannot be challenged. This only underscores the unfairness experienced by the lower caste Vedaa and her family. This slow-burn treatment makes the first half of Vedaa work well and makes one head into the intermission believing that here is a movie rife with solid potential to follow.

Sadly though, most of the goodwill of the first half is offset by the second half as it becomes a showcase of Abraham’s abilities as an action lead. The massy treatment feels strangely out-of-place, especially with the somewhat realistic treatment of the earlier half. The over-reliance on the action ends up acting unfavorably against the main point of the movie – Vedaa’s decision to go to court. Her choice to rely on the power of the judiciary is a nice counter to Abhimanyu’s usage of extra-judicial violence against a terrorist in the first half, as well as the power of the pen being mightier than the sword, or in this case, guns and fists. At least on paper, it seems to work. But the climax, focusing on Abhimanyu trying to stall Singh from entering the courtroom while Vedaa tries to convince the fearful judges about the oppression she and countless others like her have faced, doesn’t quite come off focusing more on Abhimanyu than on Vedaa making her fervent appeal.

Advani manages to play up to John’s strengths, hiding his apparent weakness as an actor pretty well while his directing of Sharvari leads to impressive results. Special mention must also be made of Abhishek Banerjee whose portrayal of a charismatic, bigoted, and manipulative casteist antagonist is nothing short of remarkable. The action sequences are, by and large, nicely executed including giving Abraham his John Wick moment. And though some of the editing in the close-combat fight scenes is pacier than necessary, it’s still visceral enough to leave an impact.

Ultimately though, Vedaa fails in trying to strike the correct balance between a socially relevant issue treated realistically and a larger-than-life star vehicle within the parameters of the commercial format. By the end, the juggling act becomes so lopsided that even the final moment of poignancy that Advani aims for, fails to affect us as it should. And that is the film’s biggest disappointment.

Hindi, Action, Drama, Color