Story:
When a Haryanvi cop stationed at a quaint, small town in Uttarakhand – Vidya Jyoti (Kajol) gets a tip about domestic abuse, she decides to pay a visit to the home in question. No points for guessing that the ailing housewife – Saumya (Kriti Sanon) refuses to speak of any wrongdoing even as the bruises on her face speak volumes about the same. Vidya chances upon Saumya’s twin sister Shailee (also played by Kriti) and tries to unearth the reason why Saumya won’t file a complaint against her abusive husband – Dhruv Sood (Shaheer Sheikh) but keeps hitting a dead end owing to a lack of evidence. Until one day, when Saumya accuses her husband of attempting to murder her, after a much public Paragliding mishap involving the duo. Dhruv vehemently denies the allegation, and now it is up to Vidya to solve the mystery. Was it an accident or an attempt to murder? Is Saumya finally telling the truth? Or could Dhruv be innocent? How is Shailee involved in all of this? Will Vidya be able to uncover the truth and get justice for the victim? That’s what Do Patti attempts to answer from hereon.
Review:
Directed by Shashanka Chaturvedi, Do Patti begins with a life-threatening situation that follows the wife accusing her husband of trying to kill her. Does it ring a bell? Of course, it does. Writer Kanika Dhillon’s last release on Netflix, Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba, had a similar beginning. We’re then taken into a flashback of the series of events leading up to the present day. The director does a decent job of introducing the characters, the conflict, the roots of the sibling rivalry, both the twins vying for the attention of the same man, and the mystery in the first half. The pace is also quick enough to keep you engaged. Although, some details could have been spared as they serve no larger purpose (for eg; Kajol’s Vidya has a pet bunny for some strange reason). All in all, a promising start for a romantic mystery thriller.
However, the house of cards that began being built with a competent exposition, begins to crumble way before it is completed. Kanika, who’s credited with writing the story, screenplay, and dialogues seems to have gotten lost in trying to pack too much into a single film. What begins as a story of twin sibling rivalry, soon becomes a mild mystery thriller, a cautionary tale about domestic abuse, an account of generational trauma and its triggers, and to top it all – a courtroom drama too, by the time the movie almost reaches its climax. In what seems a lame attempt at providing a memorable ending, the writer gives in to the temptation of explaining too much via a monologue, rather than leaving the visuals to do the talking. Despite having so many plot points, Kanika barely succeeds in doing justice to any of them, save for one.
There are glimmers of hope in a couple of scenes where we get a sense of what the film could have been had it not been so confused in its writing. Alas, that hope never gets realised to its full potential. A scene in the second half, highlighting domestic assault, although triggering, has been written, shot, and performed quite well. But such instances of well-written and executed sequences are far and few in Do Patti. In trying to touch upon and address multiple themes, the movie fails to hit the nail on any of them and becomes a convoluted concoction that is hard to swallow. The film particularly falls flat in the second half where you’d be able to spot the supposed twists and turns from quite a few miles. Clumsily written courtroom scenes and a preachy monologue in the end, further add to the sense of ‘been there seen that’.
Kriti Sanon has put up an exceptional act in portraying both Saumya and Shailee, in her maiden production (along with Kanika). The actress shines in her first performance in a double role, effectively bringing out the differences in the expressions and mannerisms of both characters. It’s never easy to play a double role and effortlessly make one distinct from the other, but Kriti succeeds in doing it with finesse, grace, and style. She’s particularly notable as the “wild, adventurous, and sporty” Shailee, even though in some instances she reminds one of Deepika Padukone’s Veronica from Cocktail (2012). On the other hand, she plays the fragile and docile Saumya with a lot of compassion and sensitivity. One may not root for her completely, knowing that she’s received preferential treatment since childhood, but one does empathise with her.
The otherwise brilliant Kajol is quite unimpressive in Do Patti as the investigating cop Vidya as well as a lawyer. She tries to do justice to her part but is let down by an underwritten character arc. We’re told that she’s constantly torn between trying to follow the written word of law vs going by the spirit of justice but we never quite see her struggle with the same. Moreover, her inconsistent Haryanvi accent throughout the film becomes too jarring. Shaheer Sheikh as the male-lead does justice to his part. He’s equal parts a “chocolate boy” (as Vidya puts it) in the romantic sequences and frightening in the scenes involving his angry outbursts. Tanvi Azmi has little to do as the childhood caretaker of the twins while Brijendra Kala is good in a small but sweet part.
The cinematography by Mart Ratassepp is fair while the background score by Anurag Saikia is apt for most parts. Kaiser Munir’s lyrics and Sachet-Parampara’s music work well with the situations in the film, except for the ill-placed Holi track titled Thaaein Thaaein in the second half which seems utterly unnecessary and disrupts the continuity of the screenplay. Out of the five songs in the film’s music album, Raanjhan stands out in the vocals of Parampara Tandon.
Verdict:
Generational trauma can leave a lasting and damaging impact, especially on young minds. The way Kanika has tried to explain the same in twin siblings, by including some instances of preferential treatment given to one, resonates with the viewers. So does her handling of issues like domestic violence and PTSD on paper. It falls short of effective execution on screen because of a confused screenplay. It remains unimpressive as a thriller and doesn’t do justice to the narrative of domestic abuse either. In the hands of Shashanka, Do Patti ends up falling flat despite an exceptional performance by Kriti Sanon.
Do Patti
Watch on: Netflix
Director: Shashanka Chaturvedi
Writer: Kanika Dhillon
Cast: Kriti Sanon, Kajol, Shaheer Sheikh, Tanvi Azmi, Brijendra Kala
Rating: 2 stars
