The Vaccine War

As is the norm after TASHKENT FILES,the filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri, has once again made a hard hitting and sensible movie based on actual facts with competent acting by almost everyone.

The takeaway(for me) from this movie was that up today we have this dreadfully dreadful situation where many Indians(for various reasons) are hell bent on disgracing their own motherland India for their own selfishly selfish motives and in turn don't hesitate to serve the vested interests of foreign countries which are intensely jealous of India's successes in different fields.

This movie needs to be judged in a different light as it does not seek to entertain the viewer,but to enlighten us from an Indian perspective,on what really happened during the Covid 19 crisis 8/10.

The vaccine war is a drama thriller film directed by vivek agnihotri.

This film has many positive points. First being the performances, you cannot find fault in anyone's performance. Nana patekar again plays the quintessential leader of the group with thorough determination. Pallavi joshi brings a warmth into the film, so does girija oak and nivedita bhattacharya. The women cast did wonders in this film.

The film celebrates india's health workers and the medical wonders india pulled during covid-19. The medical terms and scientific learnings are not oversimplified for the sake of audience. The film treats its audience smart and knowledgeable. The dialogues are also praiseworthy.

But, the film fails to differentiate between its health officials and the government. It treats the victory of health workers as the victory of the government, papering over all cracks that were visible during the days in medical facilities, transportation and the dire situation that the people were in. It is like america making a film on atom bomb and not even mentioning the state of japan. It seems ignorant.

The background music is on tricky spaces. The parts in the drama portion work but during the trials, the use of heavy breathing sound did not serve the purpose. It seemed haphazardly engineered and sounded out of place. The cinematography is good.

The film completely villainizes the media, showing them in a negative light. I guess, it needed some good writing to go the grey line. Instead of negative, the characters could have been grey and human.

The Vaccine War review :

Based on the book 'Going Viral' by Prof. Balram Bhargava of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), The Vaccine War narrates the intriguing development of India's indigenous vaccine called Covaxin with all the internal as well as external challenges encountered during its making...

Publicised as India's first bioscience film, producer- director Vivek Agnihotri and team deserve a huge applause for putting the spotlight on our unsung heroes - the scientists at ICMR and National Institute of Virology (NIV), who toiled day and night for months to combat the formidable enemy called Corona. The fact that majority of these scientists were women also makes it a pertinent subject of women power. The film is a must see only for that...

Vivek Agnihotri's political leanings are well known and no surprises, he layers his script with an elaborate sub-plot of an almost evil journalist (Raima Sen) plotting against the desi vaccine on orders of the foreign pharma conglomerates hell bent on arm twisting India. While a particular obscure media portal has indeed been indicted of spreading fake news, there were ten other major media channels promoting the 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' initiative at that time. The Vaccine War forgets this and instead paints the whole media as anti-establishment. In the climax, they are actually equated to terrorists, which is seriously not done!!

Assuredly, the casting is perfect and Nana Patekar and Pallavi Joshi, appearing together after three decades since Trishagni (1989), are truly outstanding. Girija Oak and Sapthami Gowda pitch in sincere performances. It is interesting as well as ironic to watch the extremely pretty Raima Sen in such a vicious role and boy, does she nail it. Kudos!!

The Vaccine War soars and roars till the time it stays true to its source content of how Covaxin was developed in record time and ended up saving countless lives across the globe. The minute it switches gears to the toolkit narrative, it somehow withers and dithers...

Nevertheless, this is a relevant film of our time which leaves us with a positive message that India CAN do it. Covaxin, Chandrayaan, G20... we have seen it happen in last few years. Three cheers to that!!

Regards, Sumeet Nadkarni.

It is very tough to make a coherent and engaging film on an esoteric, yet relevant topic, such as making vivid vaccination. Kudos to Vivek Agnihotri for getting it executed well, for the most part.

Based on the book Going Viral by Dr Balaram Bhargava, the head of ICMR, Vaccine War (VW) shows the challenges to culmination in a chronological manner, of the drive to produce an indigenous vaccine for the dreaded Corona.

It could have done well with better editing. This is my only sore issue with the film.

There are interweaving shots of family and professional lives, of the scientists. After a point, they feel forced and take you away from the central theme.

There are several shots, several times, which show people just nodding heads during meetings.

The politicking bit, with a journalist going after the vaccination to show the government of the day in poor light showcases Agnihotri's established political leanings. This bit is acted well by Raima Sen, who vamps impressively.

Nana Patekar is at the top of the game in most bits.

I liked it. Recommended for the intellectually curious.

"The Vaccine War" is an incredibly thought-provoking and timely movie that sheds light on the complex and crucial issue of vaccine hesitancy. The film does an excellent job of presenting diverse perspectives, allowing viewers to understand the various factors contributing to India's own vaccine development initiative .

The movie highlighted significant role that Indian scientists, researchers (especially women) and pharmaceutical companies have played in the global effort to combat diseases through vaccination. India's contributions to vaccine development and distribution have not only saved countless lives in the country but have also made a major impact on a global scale.

The storytelling is compelling, and the filmmakers have succeeded in creating a balanced and informative narrative that encourages meaningful dialogue.

Kudos to the entire team behind this eye-opening movie. It's a must watch with family.