A single mother bringing up her child by herself gets through a blast from the past- those times when she was teaching an other child, and wanted to take that child out of her problems. The film is softly hued- the premise is built between two cities, Kolkata and Chandannagar. The plot works because of Vidya Balan's performance as 'Vidya' and 'Durga Rani Singh', who (beware, a major spoiler) are the same persons. But what works more is Sujoy Ghosh's writing, which is not as strong and gripping as Kahaani which was a cinematic gem, but still has a taut dramatism involved. I'm going with 3 stars for 'Kahaani 2'. Make sure you watch it. But please don't compare it with the first outing.

A single mother bringing up her child by herself gets through a blast from the past- those times when she was teaching an other child, and wanted to take that child out of her problems. The film is softly hued- the premise is built between two cities, Kolkata and Chandannagar. The plot works because of Vidya Balan's performance as 'Vidya' and 'Durga Rani Singh', who (beware, a major spoiler) are the same persons. But what works more is Sujoy Ghosh's writing, which is not as strong and gripping as Kahaani which was a cinematic gem, but still has a taut dramatism involved. I'm going with 3 stars for 'Kahaani 2'. Make sure you watch it.

Seems like the season of sequels hasn't ended as we had yet another one hitting the screens this weekend. Incidentally, it happened to be "Kahaani 2", the prequel of which had impressed both the critics & audience alike. Apart from a couple of guest appearances, it's been more than a year since Vidya Balan had graced the screens & since she will be playing the protagonist again, the expectations are sky high. So will the sequel be able to rise above or atleast equal the benchmark set by "Kahaani"???

As in the prequel, the story unfolds in Kolkata where Vidya Sinha (Vidya Balan) is a single parent to her handicapped daughter, Mini (Tunisha Sharma). Life moved along peacefully for the two, until Mini gets kidnapped & Vidya frantically goes in search of her after a call from the kidnapper. However, she meets with an accident & slips into a coma. Sub Inspector Indrajeet Singh (Arjun Rampal) is called in to investigate the case & is stumped by the fact that she looks like Durga Rani, a wanted criminal. So was it the same person or a dopple ganger & will Vidya wake up from her coma before it is too late???

Sujoy Ghosh who had thrilled the audience four years back with "Kahaani" is back on the director's seat for the sequel. In between he had directed the Radhika Apte starrer "Ahalya", a short film which had wowed the audience with its thrilling script. In his latest venture as well, he has penned the script which takes up the disturbingly relevant topic of "child abuse", that very few Bollywood movies has explored. Armed with a credible thread, Sujoy executes the first half of the movie excellently as it captures the attention of the audience & steadily builds towards an even more riveting latter half. Unfortunately that's not what happens as the central theme gets sidelined & the movie culminates towards a predictable climax. The emotional trauma that the victim(s) goes through is barely touched upon & it is eventually turned into an attempt by Vidya to save her daughter in a rather passive manner unlike the prequel where she takes it upon herself to wreck havoc on her enemies. Tapan Basu has done a commendable job with the picturisation while Clinton Cereja's music blends with the movie.

Vidya Balan has rocked as the protagonist & plays both the parts with conviction though I cant help saying that the script couldnt do justice to her caliber. I would have to admit that I was pleasantly with Arjun Rampal's performance as he has done his part pretty well & is provided adequate screen space to showcase his skills. Jugal Hansraj has been in the wilderness for quite a while & makes a comeback with a decent performance, though he was reduced to a mundane villain in the climax. As for the rest, Kharaj Mukherjee, Tota Roy Chowdhury, Tunisha Sharma etc have done their parts adequately.

Verdict: The film will surely have a decent opening thanks to the response that the prequel had garnered. However, if the prequel had the word of mouth going in its favour in the subsequent weeks; that is unlikely to happen here which means the initial collections will be better but in the long run it will lag behind. The film had met the expectations in the first half, but in the latter half it spirals down to an ordinary thriller. In short, if you watch it without keeping the prequel as the benchmark, then you wont be disappointed!!!

Rating: 2.75/5

Regards...Ben

Kahaani 2, by Sujoy Ghosh, was one of the most anticipated films of the year. Sujoy Ghosh’s film making clubbed with the acting brilliance of Vidya Balan and a gripping thriller plot had made Kahaani (2012 release) a big hit. So only the expectations from the film Kahaani 2 was very high. It certainly is not a sequel to Kahaani, just belongs to this franchise. The story is entirely different. Suspense, unpredictability, and thriller elements are missing from Kahaani 2. It certainly begins on a high note, initial few minutes keep you engaging, but then the plot loosens up. Post-intermission, the film falls into the trap of average screenplay, predictable twists / climax. What is most admirable in the film is that Vidya excels and proves her brilliance and spontaneity in acting once again.

Vidya Sinha (vidya Balan) is a doting single working parent of Mini, a paralysed teenage girl (waist-down), confined to wheel chair. The film’s beginning shows their beautiful relationship and also the ordinary lives they are leading manner very convincingly. Vidya is saving every penny possible so as to be able to take Mini to New York for her treatment. Vidya is optimistic that Mini would be able to walk on her own after the treatment. But destiny was different. Mini gets kidnapped and Vidya gets a call to meet the kidnappers. She madly rushes to the said address but she meets with an accident and goes into coma. That is when Inspector Inderjeet (Arjun Rampal) enters into the scene and gets surprised to see Vidya, who looked like a lady called Durga Rani whom Inder knew. Inder starts going into the depth and that is when he finds a diary by Vidya. Rest of the film unravels as a flashback as Inder reads Vidya’s diary.

What is the connection between Vidya and Durga Rani? How does Inder know Durga Rani ? How is Vidya able to save her daughter? What was the motive of the kidnappers? What is the story of Vidya which gets unraveled through the diary ? How the mystery gets solved?

Vidya certainly excels in the film, her deglamorised look suits the plot. Vidya Balan’s characters keep you engaged wondering whether she is a victim or a perpetrator. Arjun Rampal is also very good, but his character is not properly developed in the film, the screenplay does not do full justice to his character. Especially in the second half, Arjun’s character Inder’s moves are very much predictable. Jugal Hansraj as Mohit and Amba Sanyal as Mini’s grandmother have distinct roles to play, but they get lost in the screenplay. Tota Roy Choudhary and Manini Chadha are noticeable. The locations Kolkatta, Chandan Nagar and Kalimpong are well captured. Kharaj Mukherjee as cop Halder is very good.

Kahaani 2 begins on a high note as an edge of the seat thriller but later the plot loosens up and gets predictable. Post-intermission, the film falls into the trap of average screenplay, predictable twists / climax. What is most admirable in the film is that Vidya excels and proves her brilliance and spontaneity in acting once again. A one-time watch.

Get ready to be thrilled. Strong concept, well screenplay and engaging direction made the film a must watch.