Top 5 'Talvar' reviews: What do critics think of Meghna Gulzar's film?

Film: Talvar 

Starring: Irrfan Khan, Konkona Sen Sharma, Tabu, Neeraj Kabi

Directed by: Meghna Gulzar

Rating: *****

WHAT’S IT ABOUT:

It's not very often that you walk out of a movie filled with a barrage of emotions – mostly of anger, outrage, shock and helplessness. That’s what Meghna Gulzar’s Talvar does to you. The film’s impact stays with you long after it’s haunting finale. Based on the much-talked-about and controversial Aarushi murder case, Meghna brings to life all of the primary and secondary characters in (with names changed for obvious reasons) and offers a first-hand view of a story that crumbled under the pressure of lies, deception and botch-ups.

14-year-old Shruti is discovered dead in the house by her parents Ramesh (Neeraj) and Nutan Tandon (Konkona). Just when the local police are investigating the matter, their servant Khempal is also found murdered on their terrace. The parents (especially the father) become obvious suspects. With too much of media heat, the case is then handed over to the Central Department of Investigation’s Ashwin Kumar (Irrfan) whose investigations lead to something else. But just when he thinks he’s cracked the case with some startling revelations, it’s taken away from him and assigned to another officer who resonates the earlier theory of the parents being guilty. The film basically offers all the versions available and leaves it to the audience to decide which one is most credible.

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Here are a few excerpts from the top five:

The Indian Express: Despite its flaws, the Irrfan-Konkona starrer is a brave film that devastates 
‘Talvar’ maintains the gritty tightrope with a virtuoso act by Irrfan Khan as CDI (standing in for CBI) officer Ashwin Kumar, who comes into the ‘case’ with some amount of reluctance and healthy skepticism. His second-in-command is Sohum Shah, again very believable in the way he switches to the side which has more profit. Read the full review here: 

Hindustan Times: A sharp narrative makes it taut, gripping thriller
Talvar is a pro-Talwar film. There is a very subtle undertone to the narrative that paints Rajesh and Nupur Talwar, parents of Aarushi who have been convicted in the double murder case, as victims of insensitive investigators and the judicial system in our country. Talvar uses the ‘Rashomon effect’, named after the Japanese movie Akira Kurosawa employed by filmmakers to highlight how unreliable and subjective human perception can be, to cast doubts over the conviction of Talwars. Read the full review here: 

NDTV: 
Bhardwaj’s solid screenplay is laced with sly wit and understated tension. Meghna Gulzar, back in the director’s saddle after an eight-year hiatus, keeps the treatment of the sensational story consistently real and tangible. A clutch of fine performances from Irrfan Khan, Neeraj Kabi and Konkona Sen Sharma, among others, also goes a long way in enhancing the impact of the plot. Notwithstanding the film’s naturalistic texture, strewn across Talvar are cross-references to Hindi cinema and lyrics of the past. Read the full review here: 

Firstpost: A must see whodunnit based on Aarushi-Hemraj murders
Talvar focuses entirely on the investigation and not the trial. Which is why it's understandable that Gulzar and Bharadwaj don't mention how Nupur Talwar changed her testimony about where she'd left Aarushi's room keys on that fateful night. The film constantly shows (as far as I recall) the key dangling from the keyhole of the daughter's bedroom whereas in reality, Nupur Talwar said the key was at the door only later in the investigations. It was a crucial change in her testimony and the change was one of the mitigating factors for the Talwars' guilty verdict. To ignore it in a film that's otherwise so meticulous is odd. Read the full review here: 

Dedh Minute Review by Aniruddha Guha: