A Thursday; a taut thriller with outstanding act by Yami Gautam


By Rajesh Ahuja


14 years ago A Wednesday,  a film about a common man taking law into his hands to shake up the legal and political system of the country over the inordinate delay in meting out justice to victims of terrorist attacks,  made the cinegoers sit up and take notice with its hard hitting message and brilliant performances by Naseeruddin Shah and Anupam kher.

Behzaad Khambata's A Thursday,  about a playschool teacher holding 16 children of her school hostage to put pressure on the establishment for the fulfillment of her demands, is yet another film on vigilante justice coming from Bollywood.



A Thursday is a taut and gripping thriller with an outstanding act by Yami Gautam 





Streaming on Disney Hotstar,  A Thursday is the story of playschool teacher Naina Jaiswal (Yami Gautam) who takes 16 kids of her school hostage. Naina Jaiswal stays in a big house, a part of which has been converted into a playschool run by her.

Naina Jaiswal,  who was on a sick leave,  has joined duty after three weeks on a Thursday.  . After the parents drop the kids to the school,  the maid Savitri (Kalyanee Mulay) requests Naina for an off the next day to to get some work done. However,  Naina suggests her to get her work done on the same day.  When Naina is alone in the playschool with the kids, she calls the Colaba Police Station and informs them that she has taken kids hostage.  She demands to be connected to Javed Khan (Atul Kulkarni). Even as she is alone in the school with the children,  driver of one of the children (Boloram Das) arrives to deliver a packet.  He is called inside by Naina and tied up.Later, the maid Savitri also returns to take her mobile as she had forgotten it . She too is tied up by Naina.Initially,  Naina asks for Rs 5 cr to be delivered to her in an hour in return for release of a child  After the money is delivered,  Naina puts foyer next demand  that she wants to talk to the Prime Minister of India Maya Rajguru (Dimple Kapadia) . Whether her demands are met and whether the cops are successful in getting the kids released forms the rest of the story.

The theme of A Thursday is similar to the 2008 film A Wednesday,  which too was about a common man holding the police and political establishment to ransom with his vigilante actions,  meant to shake them up from their stupor and lackadaisical attitude.

In large part, A Thursday succeeds in measuring up to the thrill and relatability level of A Wednesday.  The story and screenplay by Behzaad Khambata is taut and gripping and has an element of mystery about it, keeping the viewers constantly on the  tenterhooks. The pace of the film does slow down a bit towards the second half but picks up soon after. Like A Wednesday,  the story of A Thursday is relatable and will strike a chord with many people in the audience.

Behzaad Khambata's direction is impressive with there being hardly any dull moments. He manages to maintain the thrill level of the film throughout. The background music is excellent and serves to heighen the thrill level in the film.

Another USP of the film are its performances. 

Yami Gautam aces the role of a female vigilante who shakes up the police and political establishment with her act of holding 16 children hostage. What is remarkable about her performance is that she is perfectly at ease with conveying a wide range of emotions.  While on one hand she looks every bit the fierce vigilante negotiating with the police for her demands, on the other hand she is also effortless as sweet and loving teacher to kids of her playschool.  It is clearly among her best performances till date.

Atul Kulkarni is effective as senior cop Javed Khan who walks a tightrope while negotiating with Naina Jaiswal to ensure safety of the children.  Neha Dhupia is impressive as the non nonsense cop Catherine Alvarez.  Dimple Kapadia is a revelation as the Prime Minister of India who acts against advise of her aides while negotiating with Naina.

Rest of the cast,  including Maya Sarao and Boloram Das,  lend adequate support.

In a nutshell,  A Thursday is a taut and gripping thriller with an outstanding act by Yami Gautam.

My Rating;3.5/5


Watch A Thursday trailer


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