SonyLIV's latest psychological-thriller, Welcome Home, is not for the faint hearted, rightly put forward by the makers in their posters. Yes, the film is brutal, gruesome and has extreme violence and if you don't have a liking towards such a genre of cinema, then do not pay a visit to this home! You will certainly not feel welcomed!
It is Paresh Rawal's digital debut as a producer and he chose a rather off-track project to do that. However, I give full points to the team's sincerity and efforts for putting together this film, which brings forward the ugly truth of our society, where child abuse and sexual assualt is sadly still widespread.
The plot of the film is based on two young girls who are teachers and are out to do their job of Census counting. Now, on their field day, they get stranded at a house where nothing seems right. On ringing the bell, they are welcomed by a pregnant woman, whose behaviour is rather absurd. As the story unfolds, the girls are kept hostages by a middle-aged man, his mother and the servant of the house. What follows is how they struggle to escape from the house, while discovering that the old man has actually been assaulting the pregnant woman for a long time.
The casting of the film is apt. Be it the lead actresses Kashmira Irani and Swarda Thigale, or the middle aged man (Shashi Bhushan), the servant (Boloram Das) or the pregnant woman (Tina Bhatia) - all of them do full justice to their roles.
Talking about the lead actresses, Kashmira and Swarda, If you look at their Instagram accounts, you will not believe that these are the same girls. Both of them are absolutely in the character, right from their body language, makeup, hair and wardrobe.
The story, written by Ankita Narang is gripping and it is a sincere effort to throw light on the hideous crimes of child abuse and sexual assault in our society. The editing is a bit jumpy towards the end and there are a few loose ends too but if we see the overall picture, that can be ignored, as the film keeps you on the edge and you want to know what's gonna happen next.
In all, I will suggest Welcome Home to those who enjoy dark horror and psychological thrillers. I found the film engaging and hence would say it's Bingeworthy and give it 3 stars.
Image source: Sony liv
Image source: Sony liv