Movie Review: Pink (Hindi)

Pink

There is a chilling scene in Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's Bollywood directorial debut Pink where lawyer Deepak Sehgal (played by Amitabh Bachchan) lectures the court about sexual consent. "She said NO, Your Honour," he impassionately rails. If it were any other setting it would be seen as undue moralising (not that we wouldn't be better for it). But staged as a courtroom proceeding, it has the desired effect. At a time when most Bollywood movies are nothing to write home about, Pink comes as a whiff of fresh air. Granted it's not without its flaws. Taapsee Pannu and Amitabh Bachchan at times look unconvincing in the parts they play, but those are minor foibles in an otherwise compelling courtroom drama. Pink, in fact, is so taut and crisply edited we don't get to see the event that triggers the story until the closing credits roll.

Three girls attend a rock concert and on the insistence of a male acquaintance decide to spend time with his mates. They have a couple of drinks. Rajeev (Angad Bedi), one of the said friends, forces himself on Minal (Taapsee Pannu) despite her refusal. She assaults him and flees the spot. The guys take the girls to court. Thus ends the film — or starts, depending on how you look at it. It's a setting that's rooted in reality and director Chowdhury, for his part, touches upon virginity, female sexuality (and liberation), misogyny and patriarchy in so trenchant a manner not often seen in films. Just because a girl drinks and has had sex before marriage doesn't mean she has loose morals. Or that she is asking for it. A no is a no. Pink isn't so much a film about a girly colour as it is an incisive take on the harsh realities women face today. It's a movie as urgent as it can get.