Gangubai Kathiawadi – Everything we could expect from Bhansali and more!

Sanjay Leela Bhansali is recognised for creating huge worlds for his films, some of which are based on true events and transport the viewer to their own extremely detailed world. Bhansali applies the same sensibilities to Gangubai Kathiawadi, a storey situated firmly in the real world, in recent history.

Gangubai follows Alia Bhatt’s character, the titular Mafia queen, as she rises through the world of prostitution in 1960s Kamathipura, a small Mumbai neighbourhood. Faced with a variety of obstacles, Gangubai went on to advocate for women’s rights in her community, holding political rallies and other events to support sex workers.

Alia Bhatt has performed admirably in the character of Gangubai, which may be one of her most vulnerable roles to date. Despite this, I still only saw the actor and rarely saw her lose herself in the character she’s supposed to be portraying, particularly in Gangu’s latter years when she’s supposed to have a tougher demeanour. It reminded me that, while our business has brilliant performers, they rarely blend into the parts they’re supposed to play due to a lack of commitment on the part of various departments, whether it’s makeup or something else.

While Alia is the star of the show, Ajay Devgn’s guest appearance as Rahim Lala, whose short screen time is used brilliantly in providing counsel to a young Gangu in her early years, deserves special notice. Going into the film blind, I was surprised to see Vijay Raaz and Jim Sarbh fill out the cast, with Shantanu Maheshwari making his feature debut in a restrained but endearing role. Raaz only appears occasionally, at first as a counterpoint to Gangu’s ambitions to unite the entire neighbourhood, but that conflict is resolved so quickly that it feels like filler at the end. The rest of the cast is given enough screen time.

Given Bhansali’s directing, I wasn’t shocked to see nearly every frame treated with the same care and attention as those on a “larger scale,” which typically consists of song sequences. Aside from the typical attention to detail in clothing and sets, Bhansali also lets the camera move freely with the music, which is in stark contrast to the first half of the film, which focuses on Ganga’s claustrophobia.

Even though the Kamathipura neighbourhood is small, the filmmakers manage to create a convincing universe within its streets over the period of 154 minutes. The film focuses primarily on telling its storey for a broader worldwide audience, thus there isn’t much nostalgia for 1960s Mumbai. While the film is full of strong moments, there are a few that come across as a little too pandering, with scenes that don’t have Gangu directly staring at the camera while giving her comments. But that’s just me being picky; the remainder of the picture is well-made. While I understand that recording the life and works of the eponymous Gangu is a difficult undertaking, the film feels longer than it needs to be, with the weight of its runtime hitting hard on viewers at the mid-point, making the film feel a little aimless.

Overall, Gangubai Kathiawadi is precisely what you’d anticipate – even if it’s a “smaller” picture in size, Bhansali manages to deliver on every level.