Anuradha Apte (Kajol), an accomplished Odissi dancer is suddenly summoned to the hospital due to her mother Nayan's (Tanvi Azmi) having suffered a cerebral stroke, leading to coma. Anu arrives with her daughter Masha (Mithila Palkar) and brother Robindro (Vaibhav Tatwawaadi), rather nonchalantly, as she is not really emotionally connected to her mother, to the surprise of Milan (Kunal Roy Kapoor), who is penning Nayan's autobiography.
Tribhanga is a glimpse into the past of the three women across three generations, and how their respective choices of living their lives influenced and shaped that of the next generations. It's a domino effect in which Anu who suffered the effects of Nayan's choices, ensured Masha's childhood remained protected, and Masha in turn, rejoicing to live amid a large, joint family even at the expense of her individual freedom and values.
The subject is sensitive and has been handled with flourish by director Renuka Shahane. Kajol obviously gets the lion's share of screen time and is the central character - she delivers a strong performance that on a few occasions comes out as rather loud and over the top. Tanvi Azmi and Mithila Palkar have comparatively smaller roles, but don't fail to create a deep impact by holding their ground. Kunal Roy Kapoor is delightful as the outsider who connects the three women and helps reestablish mutual respect and appreciation. Tribhanga is a remarkable effort to showcase family values in modern times, and would have been even better if the events were better connected and the characters of Nayan and Masha were given more screen space. Baba Azmi's cinematography is par excellence.
