Emergency REVIEW: Kangana Ranaut pays cinematic tribute to former PM Indira Gandhi; lives to the ‘Iron Lady’ title

Film:
Emergency

Director: Kangana Ranaut

Writer: Kangana Ranaut

Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Vishak Nair, Mahima Chaudhry, Milind Soman, Satish Kaushik

Run Time: 146 minutes (2 hours 26 minutes)

Platform: In Theatres

Emergency Review

“India is Indira and Indira is India.” While most of us didn’t read this headline in the newspapers, we have at least once heard of it while reading about or listening about the late former Prime Minister of India, Mrs Indira Gandhi. After much uproar and controversies, Emergency – written, directed and starring Kangana Ranaut, finally released today in theatres and we have to say she effortlessly pulled off the looks, mannerisms and attitude of the former PM who was known as the ‘Iron Lady’ of India.

The nearly-2.5-hour-long biographical drama gives the audience a glimpse of the former PM’s childhood, her budding political career under the eyes of her father, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, her marriage to Feroze Gandhi, her tenures as the Prime Minister of India, her bond with her son Sanjay Gandhi, the emergency that lasted for 21 months, her brutal assassination and much more. The best thing about the Kangana Ranaut film is that it showcases the good, bad and ugly side of our first female Prime Minister of India and doesn’t attempt to whitewash her image or paint any political party as a villain.

Scroll below to read our review of Emergency and know whether or not you should watch this well-researched film in theatres.

What Works

The biggest highlight of this film is Kangana Ranaut’s performance as Late Indira Gandhi. The actress successfully manages to bring to life every aspect of the well researched narrative – be it her childhood, her becoming the president, confronting Sanjay and then breaking after his death is celebrated or going out of her way to serve the people of India.

Technical Analysis

Direction

Kudos to Kangana Ranaut for delivering a masterpiece – that despite being about a political who was equally loved and hated for the reforms she brought about in the country and killing democracy for 21 months, doesn’t whitewash her. The film neither shows Indira Gandhi as the saviour of the less privileged in India nor her opposition party as villains but shows her for what she was – a woman who fell several times but managed to rise up each time and serve her nation.

Story & Writing

The story is well-researched and almost every aspect of the late Prime Minister’s life is included in the narrative of Emergency. The film showcases Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi’s conflict of thoughts, Panditji feeling insecure once his daughter began getting the limelight for her political works, her formative years as a politician and her transition from being a ‘guddiya’ and ‘little girl’ to becoming the ‘Iron Lady’ of India who turned the country into a dictatorship for 21 months (emergency period).

Despite its title, Emergency only partially focuses on the 1975 imposition of emergency rule and sheds more light on her entire life.

Editing

Rameshwar S. Bhagat has done a good job editing the film and managing to include everything important that happened in her life and still keep the run time below 2 hours 30 minutes.

Cinematography

Tetsuo Nagata has managed to take us back in time with the cinematography of Emergency.

Emergency Star Cast

Kangana Ranaut’s portraying Indira Gandhi is the best thing that could have happened to Emergency. The actress’ meticulous attention to the former PM’s mannerisms and demeanour showcases her acting prowess and why she’s been the recipient of 4 National Awards to date.

Vishak Nair’s portrayal of Sanjay Gandhi is applause worth as he will make you hate the character for all the selfish and power-hungry initiatives he took. This is indeed an amazing debut for the Malayalam actor in Bollywood. Anupam Kher as Jayaprakash Narayan, Shreyas Talpade as Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Mahima Chaudhry as Pupul Jayakar, Milind Soman as Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, and Ashok Chhabra as Morarji Desai bring authenticity to their roles.

Conclusion

We recommend watching Kangana Ranaut’s Emergency to understand who the former Prime Minister, the Late Mrs Indira Gandhi was without any image cleaning of the politician. She has given her heart and soul to not only writing and directing the flick but also playing the character with conviction that is sure to get fans demanding a National Award for her.

Watch the trailer of Emergency here:

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