This could have been a sharp black comedy with a strong sense of place , mining its superb absurdist premise : at one point, you are actually gifted the real meaning of that hoary expression ‘gayi bhains paani mein’. That is laugh-out-loud funny. You wish the rest of it was the same.

…a pathetic attempt at storytelling that reminds us that not even talented actors cannot save a film from failure if its screenplay is an abominable mess.

Not a single thing in Miss Tanakpur Haazir Ho makes it worth a watch. Skip this and save yourself from this eminently avoidable overdose of misogyny and torture.

The filmmakers have however, succeeded in creating a rustic, rural milieu, that lends the right backdrop for the story to unfold. Had it been a work of fiction, the absurdity of the plot would’ve made it a leave-your-brains-at-home kind of comedy/drama. But the fact that this is no fiction and rooted in real life incidents makes the film a pertinent one and relevant too. It goes on to prove that often truth is stranger than fiction and if you don’t have the stomach to digest hard-hitting news, then a sugar-coated capsule like this one is the next best thing.

Like many of its peers, Miss Tanakpur takes off with a great premise but fails to realise its full potential.

An ensemble cast of seasoned character actors who know their onions inside out but aren’t quite sure of their Haryanvi dictions raises Miss Tanakpur Haazir Ho a few notches above the median.

Recommended with a rider: this certainly isn’t time-pass fare.

Though well-intentioned, intriguing and effective in places, this satirical tragicomedy is as sluggish as the proceedings of the very judiciary it takes a dig at…Sadly, this social satire, which could have been an eye-opener on false cases and fraud witnesses, literally has more shit (pun intended) than substance.

…an okay-ish one-time watch. It has as its core a real story, but in the process of dramatisation, the sting is left blunt. Watch it for a somewhat askew view of the bizarre-fest called Rural India.

…its writer-director Vinod Kapri has tried his best to adapt a real life incident into a film. But what seems to be playing spoilsport in the film is the lack of direction. Because of the lack of strong directorial prowess, the film seems a bit out of place in today’s context. While the first half of the film sets up the mood and the tempo of the film, the second half starts lagging and dragging at many places. The film’s direction also starts going astray at places.

Interesting concept but ultimately a lame, melodramatic satire…

The dialogues’ are clunky, the plot points are convenient and characters’ motivations, well, who are we kidding? The biggest disappointment in Miss Tanakpur Haazir Ho is that unlike other mediocre Bollywood films, it held a lot of promise; it could have said so much and so easily about the kind of people we are slowly becoming, about us being buffoons living gratuitously serious lives. But then Miss Tanakpur Haazir Ho is not the first film to have got lost in the haze between intent and execution.

A little inventiveness and craft combined with some smart writing would have been enough to make this a sharper more gratifying experience. But alas, Kapri is just not up to the task. His idea of satire is entirely situation based and loses efficacy because of it. Good solid performances by Annu Kapoor, Rahul Bagga, Ravi Kishen, Sanjay Mishra go a little way in ameliorating the incredulity experienced here!

Miss Tanakpur Haazir Ho should have been a much better film, if not let down by writing. The direction however is at par with any other good work. There is no solution preached. But no solid statement made either.

…is a thought-provoking tale which takes you through the current struggles in the Indian countryside. The satire is subtle and makes you think. If you’re in the mood for substance cinema and are tired of masala flicks, you need to catch this show over the weekend.

Debutant director Vinod Kapri was astute in picking a subject that tabloid headlines are made of. But in execution, he couldn’t convey the mood of the story. Directing a satire can be tricky. It has to subliminally mock real events without making a Kapil Sharma sideshow of it. But subtlety is not a virtue this film banks on.

From religious manipulation to gender politics to caste dominance, it reminds of the bizarre forms unbridled power can take. And Arjun’s parents and grandmother reflect the helplessness in face of this brute collation of political and money power without getting melodramatic.

Its dystopic feel reminds of Manish Jha’s “Matrubhumi”.

All in all, you can give a try to Miss Tanakpur Hazir Ho as there are no other better films releasing this week. It’s a satire which will entertain you, make you think about the issue and also will appear illogical at certain points.

The satire is seems confidently put across at first but then becomes illogical and unwieldy. Kapri is aiming for a tragicomedy about rural India, but some of his visuals are straight out of a horror movie.