‘Bhavesh Joshi’ Is a Desi Superhero-Insaaf Man Weaved Together

Camera: Shiv Kumar Maurya

Editor: Rahul Sanpui

Producer: Abhishek Ranjan

Set against the backdrop of the 2011 anti-corruption movement in the country and throbbing with raw idealism, Vickramaditya Motwani’s latest Bhavesh Joshi pulsates and swirls trying to channel the anger that most Indian’s feel about the sordid state of affairs in the country. It’s an interesting premise, which takes some time to settle itself down but has enough chutzpah to keep us hooked.

“Not Marvel, we are DC – darker, cooler and edgier,” says Bhavesh aka Priyanshu Painyuli, trying to explain his grand vigilantism. Bhavesh and his closest friend, Sikander, start a YouTube channel – Insaaf TV – and fulminate about the apathy to injustice that has seeped into the society. Donning brown paper facemasks, they try and stop trees from being cut, get WiFi restored in their society, and earnestly follow traffic rules – trying their best to be law abiding citizens with a vengeance.

The enthusiasm soon fizzles out much like the Jan Lokpal andolan itself, and while Sikku busies himself with his corporate job, Bhavesh refuses to give up the good fight. 

As the film enters darker territory with a crusade against the local water mafia in Mumbai, Siddharth Diwan’s camera captures the rising anxiety brilliantly.

Doffing their hat to the graphic novel culture, Vikramaditya Motwane, Anurag Kashyap and Abhay Korrane weave together a desi superhero – Insaaf Man.

His fuel is his self-righteous anger, and armed with just a camera, he decides to take on the villains, who, in this case, is a local minister and his goons trying to loot the water that rightfully belongs to the citizens.

In a ‘Gotham-esq’ Mumbai, dreary and depressing, the Insaaf-Man rises. It’s a compelling character but the three friends seem to operate in isolation with their interactions with family or friends or even society in general, is conspicuously limited. This somehow stunts the growth of Insaaf Man and his superhero ambitions.

Also there is a definite shift post interval where the narrative theme seems to be subsumed by the overarching theme of revenge. 

During its 156-minute runtime, Bhavesh Joshi frequently falters. Sikku, who is on the run and is being actively chased by the goons, walks around the city without ever getting noticed. The obsession with masks and learning marshal arts also at times comes across as infantile.

But the film provides enough focal points to Marvel. The technical prowess is commendable with an elaborate chase sequence nearing the climax that keeps us at the edge of our seats.

Also both our activist superheros Priyanshu and Harshvardhan Kapoor, along with their graphic novel writer friend Ashish Verma, are impressive and manage to bring a degree of emotional truth to their experiences.

Bhavesh Joshi is not perfect but a compelling character no doubt.