By: Shane Joseph Alliew
Running at 135 minutes, Haseen Dillruba, directed by Vinil Mathew (known for Hasee Toh Phasee), is based on Roald Dahl’s short story Lamb to the Slaughter.
The plot is a series of flashbacks and present-day police enquiry scenarios where Rani Kashyap (Tapsee Pannu) is being investigated for the accused murder of her husband Rishu (Vikrant Massey), who apparently has died in a gas explosion at home, whilst Rani was out feeding the dogs after her return from the market.
Their marriage is an arranged one which has called for several adjustments on both fronts – Rani a post-grad in Literature and a voracious reader of crime thrillers, needs to settle into the role of a cliched homemaker, whist Rishu the doting husband needs to be an active partner in the bedroom, removing the hero-worship he has for Rani.
Spice-up this drama with the typical mother and father-in-law comments and the film barely scratches the surface of the Indian household drama. But lurking beneath is a more serious dark comic-tragedy, that of unfulfilled desire which leads to one mistake – hashtag it as #BhabiLove.
Rishu’s cousin, the very macho Neel (Harshvardhan Rane) comes visiting for his annual river rafting tourism trips and encounters Rani. The fatal attraction is mutual and before sense dawns upon both, they are in bed with each other. Not only this, but also Rani talks of ending the marriage with Rihsu and moving out with Neel, when she gets the not-so-ordinary surprise that he has left the next day.
The rest of the film deals with, will her husband accept her, for she does confess immediately of her infidelity and the humiliation she undergoes to save her loveless marriage – but why is the big question.
And then there is the twist at the end – which once more glorifies the happy ending of a newly discovered love in an arranged marriage which otherwise is perhaps meant for women to dutifully take over household responsibilities and produce heirs (preferably males).
Yet beneath the surface of Haseen Dillruba are vital questions thrown to the audience, which begs for attention and answers – is a woman to be held responsible if her husband is not able to consummate the marriage? Is a woman only responsible if she gives into her desires and is later shelved, like bed linen being changed? Is a woman responsible for an erratic loveless marriage?
Audiences have not lapped the film, as per reports and reviews from well-known critics, and may be so – but the questions raised through the depiction of a pedestal-placed young housewife cannot be ignored, as much as the questions raised by Tapsee in her previous films, Thappad and Pink.
Premiered in July, the film is available on Netflix and is worth a watch – for let the audience decide the fate of the creation.