This film can be seen as India's Knives Out. A well-crafted noir that thrills and makes one think
Of the many idiosyncrasies showcased in Hindi cinema, character names have a unique place of its own. The moment we hear the name, the character’s true nature is revealed. While the hero has soft names like Munna, Raja, Raju, Vishal etc the villains have bombastic names like Kancha Cheena, Chathur Singh Chitha, Gabbar Singh, Jageera, Shakaal and so on. The classic Doordarshan era series Chandrakanta’s villain is Kroor (cruel) Singh. There is no need for any other character description.
The reason for elaborating on the Hindi film tradition of unique names is the protagonist of the latest Netflix thriller Raat Akeli Hain (The Lonesome Night). Nawazuddin Siddiqui plays the honest to a fault cop Jatil Yadav. Jatil means stubborn, complex, unsolvable etc. The hero’s name is the gist of this layered investigative thriller. Jatil is quite jatil, as in stubborn and headstrong; the female protagonist Radha (Radhika Apte) is also jatil, as in being complicated; the case that is at hand is also jatil, as in almost unsolvable, and the family under scrutiny is also jatil, as in twisted. Actually, all things considered, the name of the film should have been Jatil.
Now there is no clues whether the writer Smita Singh and director Honey Trehan came up with this unique name for the character. But it was quite a naming coup.
The story is about the investigation on the murder of a feudal lord Raghuveer Singh (Khalid Tyabji) on the day of his second marriage. The investigating officer Jatil Yadav has a hunch that things are not black and white in this case and decides to unearth the truth, no matter what. The ensuing incidents changes lives and perspectives of the hero and those he is investigating.
Raat Akeli Hain happens in Kanpur, UP, which means ample scope to show lawlessness, violence, feudal and patriarchal excesses and of course the atrocities against women. Thankfully, in this film, the violence is suggested and not shown explicitly. Every woman, except for the excellent Ila Arun as Jatil’s doting and sensible mother, is a victim.
Radha is a victim of sex trafficking and sexual assault, the murdered patriarch’s first wife died mysteriously five years ago, his daughter Karuna Singh (Shweta Tripathi) is stifled by the drunkard and hot-head husband, his sister Pramila (Padmavati Rao) is dependent on her brother’s support, niece Vasudha (Shivani Raghuvanshi) is hiding a deep-set trauma with bitchiness, the house help Chunni (Riya Shukla) is yearning justice from a system that buried the case of her father’s death. And all the men, even the well-meaning Jatil cause them harm.
But to the writer’s credit, the women are not made into one-note characters. Radha is brave and defiant as much as she is hurt and vulnerable. She does not look up to Jatil as her personal saviour even when he tries to be her knight in armour. And Radhika plays it perfectly. Ila Arun is a mother who dotes on her son and wants to see him married and settled. But she is also not naïve like his son, who is looking for a text-book bride, and chides his myopic views about women. The mother-son interactions are among the best in this film. This mother character stands apart from the typical Indian mother trope by encouraging her to pursue and woman, who according to the society is characterless.
The men are either lascivious, judgemental, power-hungry, opportunists or upright and uptight. The last two describe Jatil. One of the other significant aspects of this film is his transformation. Through the subtle change in his perception about morality and women, the writer and director has challenged established ideas of nobility and chivalry.
Performances in this film are top-notch. Nobody misses a beat and the screenplay is near-perfect. A few chinks do not spoil the overall entertainment. The ending is a little filmy, but that works well. Because at times we need gritty realism tempered with a bit of hopefulness. Honey Trehan, you have made an impressive debut. Hope to watch more good stuff from you. And Smita Singh, your writing is inspired.
Do not miss this one, if you are a die-hard fan of thrillers. And certainly, watch it, if you are in the mood for a good film. You will not be disappointed either way.
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