Directed By: Sujoy Ghosh
Star Cast: Vidya Balan, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Nawazuddin Siddiqui
Critics Verdict: "Excellent Performance of Vidya Balan. Hugely recommended!"
By Taran Adarsh, Bollywood Hungama - 4 stars
"The rules of entertainment are altering rapidly. Moviegoers, in the present day, are diffident about a film wholly centered on grim societal subject matters. Nor are they enthused about a conventional mainstream motion picture. What works for the discerning spectator in the current scenario is an evenhanded permutation. So does KAHAANI encompass the all-important blend? Let's explore...", Adarsh wrote on Bollywood Hungama.
On the whole, KAHAANI works big time because Vidya Balan makes it come alive. It is several notches above the stuff we've been subjected to in the past. The movie triumphs in evoking emotions. You experience compassion, resentment, defenselessness and triumph at a variety of stages. A wonderful movie-going experience, you come out feeling a sense of pride, pleasure and fulfillment after having watched KAHAANI. Just do not miss it. Hugely recommended!", concluded by Adarsh on Bollywood Hungama.
By Kunal Guha, Yahoo.com - 2.5 stars
“Computers are like a cycle for the mind,” is something the late Steve Jobs once said. His analogy works just as well for suspense thrillers. Some love them for the uneasiness of being unsure of what will happen next, others enjoy putting the pieces together before the climax. And if they can’t, they love it even more. ‘Kahaani’, with a few loose ends, manages to score with an ‘unpredictable end’ but the tension on the screen doesn’t translate into an anxious audience. Not throughout the film at least.
The suspense in Sujoy Ghosh’s ‘Kahaani’ may not be nail-chewing-worthy but he succeeds in getting Kolkata to perform at its peak and look like it’s on a wire between vintage and decrepit. The overall attitude of the city and the city’s voice is consistent in the story and the characters too. But forcing the goddess Durga metaphor in the end seems less like a tribute and more like ticking every Bengali stereotype imaginable to suggest the shooting location. Long shot of Haaauraah Breej. Close shot of travelling inside a traaam. Bhhictory!
By Sukanya Verma, Rediff.com - 4 stars
Sukanya Verma says Vidya Balan excels in Kahaani, a film which is much too enjoyable to find flaws.
The concept behind a jigsaw puzzle is most fascinating. Its three-step model involves drawing an intricate picture laden with buried details and fine clues, cutting it into several unrecognizable segments and assembling a jumble that carries a seemingly simple challenge -- to fall in place, to make sense.
Even though Kahaani is designed around her, her co-actors are just as impressive. Parambrata's gentle countenance and measured delivery as someone with an obvious soft corner is an ode to understatement. On the other hand, Nawazuddin Siddiqui's caustic tone and humorless disposition conveys unpleasant in its most memorable avatar.
Sly, gripping and taut, Kahaani is much too enjoyable to find flaws. This is, without doubt, Sujoy Ghosh's best work so far. Go watch it.
