A romance set against the Holocaust that leaves more unease than feeling.
Verdict tier Mixed, lukewarm or divided, on a scale of Unfavorable, Mixed, Recommended, Exceptional.
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Critic consensus
Critics are sharply divided on Bawaal, with the central controversy being its use of World War II and the Holocaust as a backdrop for a failing marriage. Several reviewers found the parallel between relationship struggles and a war that killed millions to be tone-deaf and trivializing, with some calling it an outright misfire. A smaller number of critics acknowledged the film's entertainment value and its recreation of wartime history as worthwhile. Nitesh Tiwari's character work drew some appreciation, but even sympathetic reviews noted the film's ideals were difficult to accept.
2 not-rated reviews aren't plotted
Positive = 6.5/10 and up · negative = below 5/10
AI-generated summary of 9 critic reviews · may contain errors
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Top critics first, then by score · not-rated last · updated
Top critic
Film review ·
Instead of being moved by the plight of the millions who lost their lives in the concentration camps, as our leads do, walking through Auschwitz, all we feel is a sense of waste: simplistic and trivialising takes on Hitler and World War II do not make a history lesson.
Top critic
Film review ·
Bawaal is an epic misfire. Bawaal trivializes this unimaginable horror. The Holocaust is conflated with strife in a relationship. Honestly, it's dumbfounding.
Film review
On the whole, BAWAAL makes an important comment in a novel yet entertaining manner.
Film review
'Bawaal' is worth watching for World War II history, especially the recreation of the holocaust.
Film review ·
Varun Dhawan, Janhvi Kapoor's Bawaal was just a good film. Being a Nitesh Tiwari film, I believe that it could have done better.
Film review
Director Nitesh Tiwari has a knack for creating intriguing characters and scenarios that feel fresh yet familiar at the same time. But the underlying goal behind all their actions -- questionable or inspirational -- is rooted in wisdom. Only, the far-fetched ideals of Bawaal are easier said than swallowed.
Film review ·
Bawaal is hands down one of the most tone deaf mainstream Hindi films I have seen. The drawing of parallels between a relationship's struggles and a war that killed 6 crore is downright insensitive, no matter how well-intentioned it is.
Film review ·
Much of this almost wondrously misjudged Bollywood film is perfectly palatable: the tale of a limited man redeemed by his far superior wife... harder to swallow is the way the darkest chapter in European history is repeatedly used to chivvy their romance along. The scene is so mind-bogglingly vapid it's hard to watch.
Film review
Here's a mainstream Bollywood romance purposefully contextualising the unimaginable horrors of the World War II and the Holocaust to fit into the narrative of a failing marriage. There's no way to digest a film like Bawaal, and that it exists today, in all its singular insensitivity.
Credits
Varun DhawanAjay Dixit
Janhvi KapoorNisha
Manoj PahwaAjju's Father
Anjuman SaxenaAjju's Mother
Prateek PachoriBipin
Aparna GhoshalNisha's Mother
Mukesh TiwariMLAHindi films like Bawaal
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