Pippa Movie Review: Ishaan Khatter & Priyanshu Painyuli performances saved the not so crisp writing of the film

Language: Hindi and Bengali

Cast: Ishaan Khatter, Priyanshu Painyuli, Mrunal Thakur, Soni Razdan, Chandrachoor Rai, Anuj Singh Duhan, Kamal Sadanah, Flora David Jacob

 Director: Raja Krishna Menon

 Pippa had all the right ingredients to be called a successful film with the right research, but somewhere the writing failed. But what kept it alive was the performances of the brilliant star cast which never faltered. Looked like all the actors – Khatter, Priyanshu Painyuli, Mrunal Thakur, Soni Razdan were in a mission to give their best.

Those of us who have heard about the 1971 war that India fought to liberate East Pakistan from Pakistan, which is now known as Bangladesh, knows exactly what happened. But I am sure there are many who are not much aware of the war and the history behind the formation of the Mukti Bahini. For them understanding Pippa may be a holy mess. Though the set design and the camera work is brilliant.

The story of Pippa is about a typical military family where both the sons have joined the Indian Army to serve the nation. Priyanshu Painyuli plays the role of the elder brother Major Ram Mehta, a very well-turned out disciplined and fine officer. The younger one, Captain Balram Singh Mehta played by Ishaan Khatter is the exact opposite. He is bright, but hates to follow military protocols.  Captain Balram Singh Mehta thinks unconventionally, but has disciplinary issues and fails to take responsibilities. At home too there is a constant conflict between the two brothers because their views are different. Mrunal Thakur plays the role of their sister, Radha. There is a fun element too in her character and she has a lot of similarities with her younger brother, but in a toned down way.

Pippa is based on Captain Balram Singh Mehta’s war memoir, The Burning Chaffees. I haven’t read the book, so I can’t talk about it. There are war sequences with the tank called Pippa that Captain Balram Singh Mehta (Ishaan Khatter) is fond of. But nobody really understands why the film is called Pippa. What didn’t work with the film is the chemistry between the brothers. It is a bit too strained. The elder one is the apple of the eye of the mother (Soni Razdan) and the younger one is the black sheep of the house. The elder one is diplomatic and knows how to play a ‘good boy’, hide his cigarettes and put the blame on his younger brother. While the younger one is unapologetically rash, but never lies.  Radha (Mrunal Thakur) is the most balanced character who has her share of fun with the younger brother when it comes to smoking on the sly and learning how to ride and on the other hand she is obedient in front of her elder brother and mother.

The film actually takes off when both go on war to liberate East Pakistan from Pakistan which is now known as Bangladesh. The movie does get monotonous and slow in some places probably because of the era that they are showing, but it is definitely engaging. I in some places felt that Pippa is a movie that could have done well both theatrically and on the digital platform.

Ishaan Khatter is a brilliant actor, but to some extent I felt that there was a bit of an over acting in this film. Not denying the fact that he plays the role of a not so disciplined army officer, but one thing is for sure that when you are in fauj and the way the training goes no matter how big a flirt or a mischievous person you are, there is a certain style that they have which Khatter failed to match up. The man from no angle looked like an army man even with his uniform on and that funky hair cut it just doesn’t go.

I somehow felt that Priyanshu Painyuli did a much better job. shakaal sai, akaal sai, bolana ka taadika sai, he looked like an army officer. He played a mature role of an elder brother and a fine officer with not much dialogue, but he did full justice to it. But I guess the script didn’t do justice to him. His character could have been explored a little bit more.

Coming to Mrunal Thakur, I am totally disappointed with her last few performances and not just Pippa. There are absolutely no layers to her role of the character that she plays. I feel her performance here was a shade better than her last few performances, but she seriously needs to think about how to refine her craft. Soni Razdan, on the other hand, hardly has a role to play. Playing the role of a war widow, there could have been so many layers to her character and so many back stories. She is just shown to be a sulking mother who clearly loves the elder one more and differentiates between them. That’s it.

But, overall the movie is a tribute to India’s generosity in the making of Bangladesh. A sincere mission which could have been executed a little bit better in the film.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Watch the Pippa trailer here

Watch Pippa on Amazon Prime Video