Though she plays a gangster in Gangubai Kathiawadi, Alia Bhatt doesn’t resort to one swear word, not one reference to a mother’s or a sister’s anatomy. And yet there is something inherently menacing in Alia’s transformation from the angelic parts she has played so far (even the spy in Raazi seemed shy to hurt a fly, even if the fly was Pakistani). Alia is intrinsically good-natured and sophisticated. To get her to be fully into this boorish backstreet mode of a badass brothel siren is no easy matter. Alia seems to get into the accent, body language and her space in the period pace comfortably.
In the livewire editing evident in the brief teaser, the mesmeric photography merging the mobocracy of the 1960s in Mumbai’s redlight area Kamathipura with the autocracy of one woman who dared to have more balls than her male criminal colleagues.
Alia Bhatt ticks all the boxes for an award-winning performance. She is gutsy and unabashed. She isn’t afraid to get out of her comfort zone. The teaser shows her transition from brothel crimelord to a hardcore politician with fluency that is indicative of a master moviemaker at work.
I don’t know about you. But as a diehard fan of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s work, after seeing the teaser I can’t wait to see more of the film.
Image Source: Instagram/gangubaikathiawadi, youtube/penmovies