Pink

Often times, those who are nominated to positions of power and influence, bear a false sense of privilege that is misused and goes unchecked. In a city that is known exactly for a large number of such men, women tend to become the victims of misogyny and indignity. 'Pink' is a reflection of this deeply flawed society that even in today's times, instinctively falls back on stereotyping that is baseless. Director Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's social drama truly becomes a thriller of sorts in its second half when the trial exposes not just the victims and perpetrators but also the society which plays a huge role in determining who the guilty are.

When a casual night out after a rock concert ends up with a bottle smashed into the face of a minister's nephew, the girls who were simply defending themselves from physical molesters have drawn curtains on a wild party life. Constantly in a state of nervous silence and anxious worry, their daily routines soon get affected by threats from the men who seek vengeance for the grave injury to their beloved friend. Minal Arora (Tapsee Pannu), in an impulsive act of rage and self-defense, smashed a bottle onto Rajveer Singh (Angad Bedi) who crossed the lines of decency when they were at a party. Unfortunately for Minal and her friends, Falak (Kirti Kulhari) and Andrea (Andrea Tariang), Rajveer happens to be the nephew of a powerful South Delhi politician. A series of harassment attempts affect their landlord, their workplace and even their casual coffee outings. Thus, even the FIR complaint against the harassment by Rajveer and his accomplices falls on deaf ears at the Police station and soon enough, a counter complaint gets Minal arrested for attempted murder.

These proceedings are keenly observed by one of the neighbors where the girls live and seeing the injustice, offers to take their case even though he had retired as a renowned lawyer due to his mental illness. Deepak Sehgal (Amitabh Bachchan) maybe old and weak but he knows the law better than most and with his more measured approach, he combats Prashant Mehra (Piyush Mishra), the prosecutor whose loud and boisterous accusations reflect the society's flawed mentality and baseless stereotyping. Mehra represents the bigotry of the orthodox Indian society that downplays the role of women and their rightful positions while questioning every action with a perverse and sick assumption. His loud and overpowering arguments are the embarrassing reality of the way many men think of women even in these times in an evolving society. In stark contrast, Deepak Sehgal tries to evaluate how low the society has fallen to mistreat and misjudge 3 innocent women who were victims of the power-hungry perpetrators. Can he help deliver unbiased justice to the girls while challenging the irregularities of society's stigma and prejudices? Pink hits the value system hard and the director keeps the viewer engaged with twists and revelations that keep the verdict hanging till the very end.

Tapsee Pannu and Kirti Kulhari deliver riveting performances as they struggle through their altered realities. Tapsee mumbles her responses as a witness in the box but she portrays her shaken self quite convincingly. Falak is targeted by Mehra's accusations of prostitution and eventually, deviates from the planned defensive lines. Kirti's performance here is gut wrenching and her plight is understandable. Prashant Mehra's aggressive prosecution allows Piyush Mishra to thrive on his excellent dialogue delivery. He matches up to Amitabh Bachchan's commanding presence with his performance, thus charging the scene up for audiences to enjoy. As an aging Deepak Sehgal, Bachchan's portrayal of an acclaimed lawyer is powerful not only with his sheer presence and calculated dialogue delivery, but also the conviction with which he fervently supports the girls. The closing statement by Amitabh Bachchan is among his finest performances in recent times that also highlights the film's underlying theme. It's effect is moving and necessary to shake up the hypocrisy in a flawed society. However, while Mr. Sehgal's decision to fight for the girls comes as celebratory news in the plot line, there's hardly any communication among them in preparation for each hearing. That's precisely where we would've had a better understanding of why they behaved as they did in court. It still provides for riveting courtroom drama but for the kind of overall realism depicted by Chowdhury, this seems like a fundamental interaction that's almost omitted.

Director Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury keeps the accusations louder than the defense and with good reason. The hypocrisy and outdated mentality resonate through the general population and in some cases, out of guilt of being a part of it. Pink is a very important film for today's times and as an influence for the future generations. It depicts the darker reality that we live with but choose to ignore it as it may not affect us directly. It demands a change in the way we think of women, a basic change in mentality that is needed to raise society as a whole and treat each other with respect and draw strict lines when it comes to individuality.

• 8.955 on a scale of 1-10.

When I read the reviews I thought this movie would be interesting like a typical whodunit- crosses-courtroom drama. When the credits rolled I walked away impressed.

Pink is a tour de force. It's a simmering mixture of morality, drama, mystery and debate whose intensity never slips. I can't recall one Bollywood movie in recent memory which has such taut seriousness that never flags. Pink has no light moments. And it is utterly brilliant.

Part of its brilliance lie in Pink's on-the-money portrayal of biases and confusion surrounding independent, headstrong women in modern Indian society. Shoojit Sarkar brings to light darker biases that most modern Indians - men and women - carry but won't admit to.

The narrative is his secret sauce in ensuring that none of the morality or gravitas ever slip into preachy frivolosity. It's an impactful movie on a serious issue that deserves praise for not trivializing the issues it tackles.

Amitabh Bacchhan is brilliant as always and so are the girls and all supporting actors in the way they bring believability and emotion to their non stereotypical roles.

A great watch - you'd definitely not end disappointed.

Pink is a gripping social film, brilliantly directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury. The script is excellent, very well layered, and the film moves at a steady pace. Pink works as a taut thriller, and it is really a strong one at that - very intriguing and highly captivating. But the trick is that it's not just about the thrills because beneath the well-built tension lies a deeply involving social message on the important issues of sexual harassment, corruption, cultural and class differences, and above all, gender equality. The story culminates in a lengthy courtroom sequence which is stupendous and fascinating. This portion of the film takes away from everything else in it, and it is aided by consistently authentic, sharp dialogue, and an impressive attention to detail. That the setting is realistic only helps, ditto for the fantastic editing and cinematography, which enhance the film's credibility. This remains the film's prime asset which will have viewers on the edge of their seats.

The acting is roundly excellent and, needless to say, the film relies on the towering presence of Amitabh Bachchan, who is tremendous. There isn't a single false note in the way he plays this fantastic part - stylish, compassionate, heroic, and never less than a real character. Interestingly, he gives up top billing for the three leading ladies, so as to highlight their importance. Indeed, all three of them are convincing. Taapsee Pannu is the central of the three, and she is highly competent, but the other two, Kirti Kulhari and Andrea Tariang, actually give the film most of its raw energy and compassion. They are wonderful. Among the supporting actors, Piyush Mishra does exceedingly well as the amusing prosecutor, but the scene-stealer is doubtlessly Dhritiman Chatterjee, who is phenomenal as the fair and decent judge whose every expression speaks volumes. Other than being an important, issue-based film, Pink is a true cinematic experience well worth watching.

Pink (2016)

"No. No, your honor. 'No' is not a word. It is a complete sentence. It doesn't need any further explanation. 'No' simply means 'no'. My client said no', your honor and these boys must realize that 'no' means 'no' whether the girl is an acquaintance, a friend, girlfriend, or a sex worker. Or even your own wife! 'No' means no'! I want someone says so, you stop."

The Good: * Makes important statements regarding social issues includes consent, double standards for females and males, inherent biases, molestation, misogyny, rape, self defense, social strata, and violence against women. This is especially relevant in India, where rapes often go unreported for to fear of public shame and possibly (as portrayed in the film) having it backfire. It is still frowned upon by some for a girl to be independent, outspoken, willful, or to drink or go anywhere in private with a male. * Amitabh Bachchan, due to his seniority, was originally first listed in the credits. However, to show gender equality, he requested to have his name listed after the three leading ladies. It is great to know that the actor was as passionate about gender quality as his character was in the film. * A clever creative choice was showing the scene of what actually happened that night, in slow motion, during the credits. Be sure to wait for that.

The Bad: * Great acting overall by the three leading ladies, but they were quite melodramatic. It alternated between an impressive performance and a performance completely overdone. * Bachchan may have had a powerful presence, but he was also creepy. Whatever the reasons, his breathing mask, combined with his mysterious demeanor and harsh voice, made for more of a creepy presence. Add to that the angles that made his eyes look white in many scenes, he was straight up scary. Supposedly he had bipolar, but I do not even know why that was a detail.

The Ugly: * Unrealistic portrayal of a court debate. These lawyers would not be a allowed to intimidate and yell at the witnesses on the stand, practically coercing them into a false confession. Likewise, they would not be allowed to preach on topics irrelevant to the case. The case becomes a stage for feminism, narrated by Bachchan. * Makes important points, but crosses the line very early on into preaching. To the point that I might call this propaganda. * Unrealistic to the point that I could not take it seriously and became bored in the second hour of this unnecessarily long film.

Conclusion: Many memorable lines, overall good performances,, made a valuable case for many important social issues; but excessive in length, portrayed court cases unrealistically, and it became preaching (practically) propaganda.

More than half of the seats empty in the theater at an afternoon show of "Pink" gives us the message whats exactly wrong with Bollywood. Replacing the movie with Dabangg or other such worthless crap, shows would be house-full. Pink is a masterpiece and lives up to it's expectations. Powerful and world-class performances given by Amitabh Bachchan sir (once again) and Piyush Mishra makes this movie a gem. This is one of the career best performance by Big B. He runs the whole show. Tapsee's acting could have been so much better; but still, it was a job well done.

The movie deals with what we read daily in our newspapers. MOLESTATION. This movie depicts the corrupt system and shows it in a brutally honest way (personal experience).

I'd say go for this movie, you'll surely love it. Fans of Amitabh will get =a bombastic surprise! ;)