‘Tribhanga – Tedhi Medhi Crazy’: The quintessential director’s movie

Renuka Shahane is an accomplished actress. Tribhanga - Tedhi Medhi Crazy, her directorial debut with a self-written screenplay, has started streaming on Netflix. The film’s story about three women of a dysfunctional family has Tanvi Azmi, Kajol and Mithila Palkar as characters from three generations. It is, one must add, a film that must not be missed.

Crisply edited with a running time of 95 minutes, the film that takes us through the lives of its three protagonists reveals a confident directorial mind at work.

Tribhanga, in short, is not a film without flaws. It is difficult to understand, for instance, why Kajol’s character Anuradha, a celebrity who has been awarded the Padma Shri for her expertise in Odissi dance, needs to be so foulmouthed. That said, the film’s strengths, such as good acting by everybody in the star cast and a well-knit screenplay, ensure that the viewer remains engrossed in the proceedings.

Tribhanga starts with a sequence that has a grim twist. Milan (Aditya Roy Kapoor) is interviewing Nayantara (Tanvi Azmi) for her autobiography. Nayantara suddenly suffers a brain stroke and is rushed to the hospital. Her daughter Anuradha (Kajol) with whom she hasn’t been on good terms abandons her performance to visit her mother. .

Shahane deserves applause for ensuring that the episode isn’t marred by melodramatic outpourings that frequently intrude upon typical Bollywood screenplays. On the other hand, she uses the sequence to introduce us to people around Nayantara, among them Anuradha, her spiritually inclined brother Robindro (Vaibhav Tatwawaadi) and Masha (Palkar), Anuradha’s daughter.

Tribhanga’s substance comes from the backstories of its female leads, mainly Nayantara and Anuradha. Kajol is impressive as the latter, making the viewer experience the pain hidden deep inside her, which her outspoken and aggressive facade tries to conceal. However, Azmi’s Nayantara is the one to watch out for.

Although Nayantara is in coma in the present, flashbacks around her, with Shweta Mehendale playing her younger version, give the story its strength and soul. Palkar’s character, which contrasts with the individualistic women from the two preceding generations, predictably suffers in comparison. But the young and gifted actress comes into her own whenever there is a need and leaves a mark.

Tribhanga deals with several themes, including those of ambition, personal loss, patriarchy, physical abuse and strain in relationships. Sensitively crafted moments directed with the heart in the right place make it an eminently watchable film. It will be loved by those who seek unusual films with the hope that the maker hasn’t gone overboard in an attempt to be different.