Goodbye Review: We often talk to our family or friends about how we want to get married or how we want to celebrate a birthday. But it is considered bad to even talk about how we want to go after death, how we will die, forget about preparing for it. Director Vikas Bahl’s film ‘Goodbye’ is woven around this very question. This slice-of-life drama tries to create humor through satire amidst the story of death. Vikas Bahl’s ‘Goodbye’ is opening the doors of Bollywood for Rashmika Mandanna. Let us tell you how this film is.
Goodbye is the story of a family of Gayatri Bhalla and Harish Bhalla. They have 4 children and all of them live in other cities and countries due to their jobs. Their daughter Tara is a lawyer and lives with her boyfriend. The elder son lives in America, the younger son also lives in another country. Gayatri Bhalla suddenly dies and Harish is trying to convey this information to his children. Tara reaches her home first, then Karan and then Gayatri-Harish’s adopted child Angad. Harish seems very angry with his children because he feels that they are not as sad about their mother’s death as they should be. Tara is upset because she is not able to feel connected to any of the rituals of her mother’s last rites. She repeatedly talks about finding their logic and science… This is the story of Gayatri’s departure and then how this scattered family tries to complete all the rituals.
Before this story of Vikas Bahl, in the last 2 years, films like Seema Pahwa’s ‘Ram Prasad Ki Terhvi’ and Umesh Bisht’s ‘Pagglait’ have been released which have shown the message ‘life goes on after death’. But the setup of ‘Goodbye’ has been shown in an ultra modern family. Also, through Rashmika’s character, all those questions have been raised which are often seen asking or saying by the youth of the new generation like, ‘What are these customs, what is the logic behind them…’. Rashmika is also doing the same. However At many places, I found Rashmika’s irritation extra. Also, she is repeatedly saying that ‘mother did not want all this on her death.’ But in no part of the story is it established why she is saying so. A daughter who is repeatedly ignoring her mother’s phone, not replying to her messages, is suddenly saying her words on her mother’s death.
Rashmika Mandanna plays the role of Amitabh Bachchan’s daughter.
The first half of the film is quite predictable but still captivating. Things like the neighbours waiting for a chair, trying to create a WhatsApp group in the crematorium, etc. directly depict ‘insensitivity’. Ashish Vidyarthi, who plays the neighbour, has been amazing in his performance. Seeing him, you will definitely remember such uncles around you. Talking about acting, everyone gets excellent marks in their performance. Everyone has been fit in their respective roles. Their emotions are completely visible on the screen.
If this film is judged on parameters like story and acting, then it will be discussed differently but there is no doubt that while watching ‘Goodbye’, there will be many such moments when you will not be able to hold your tears. In one scene, the golgappa wala comes and asks to call Gayatri ji. Hearing this, Pavel Gulati, who plays Karan, starts calling ‘Maa’. Believe me, this scene will shake you from within. While watching the film, many times you will feel like calling your parents who are living in another city and tell them that ‘you are very important… I love you Maa Papa’. And this is the success of this film. The good thing is that you will not find a villain anywhere in the film, neither in the son and daughter nor in the father who is upset after the death of his wife.
Although the first half is as story-driven as the second half, the second half is full of feel-good factor. Also, the film becomes very musical in the second half. As soon as the second half starts, Sunil Grover enters and this entire track of Haridwar is quite entertaining. Whether you agree with the story of this film or not, but this film has the potential to bring a flood of emotions within you. 2.5 stars for this film from me.
Detailed Rating
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Amit Trivedi/5 |
Tags: amitabh bachchan, rashmika mandanna
FIRST PUBLISHED : October 7, 2022, 11:36 IST
