Story
Pagglait
opens
with
the
shot
of
a
cycle
seat
adjusting
itself
to
the
movements
of
a
man's
hips.
We
are
then
introduced
to
Shanti
Niwas,
the
inhabitants
of
which
are
mourning
the
loss
of
a
family
member,
Astik.
The
deceased
man's
wife
Sandhya
(Sanya
Malhotra),
on
the
other
hand,
is
busy
scrolling
through
the
comments
on
her
husband's
death
post
on
her
Facebook
page
in
her
room.
When
her
bestie
Nazia
(Shruti
Sharma)
lands
at
her
marital
house
for
a
few
days,
Sandhya
confides
in
her,
"Bilkul
rona
nahin
aa
rahaan
hain
yaar
aur
bhuk
bhi
kaske
lag
rahin
hai." From
craving
for
some
Pepsi
and
masala
chips
to
sneaking
out
to
gorge
some
'golgappas',
Sandhya
has
other
things
on
her
mind
while
her
family
members
come
together
for
13
days
of
mourning.
Be
it
the
catty
bua
(Ananya
Khare),
the
instruction-shouting
tauji
(Raghubir
Yadav),
the
chacha
(Rajesh
Tailang)
or
another
relative
who
quotes
Shakespeare
and
attributes
Sandhya's
strange
behaviour
to
PTSD,
each
one
of
them
have
their
own
reasons
to
be
present
at
Shanti
Niwas.
However,
when
Sandhya
stumbles
upon
a
hidden
secret
of
her
deceased
husband,
the
girl
finds
herself
questioning
her
own
beliefs
and
realizing
that
she
has
got
to
take
some
hard
decisions
which
might
change
her
life
forever.
Direction
Umesh
Bist's
Pagglait
is
a
strong
commentary
on
the
mansplaining
and
the
patriarchal
nature
of
the
society
which
still
finds
it
difficult
to
digest
the
fact
that
a
woman
can
also
have
her
own
'voice'.
With
dialogues
laced
with
humour
and
brutal
truth,
the
filmmaker
gets
his
basics
right.
This
is
one
of
the
few
films
which
gives
a
closer-to-life
representation
of
death
in
a
family.
On
the
flipside,
the
writing
gets
sluggish
at
places
especially
which
distracts
you
for
a
bit.
Further,
on
focusing
on
issues
of
women's
emancipation,
the
narrative
wobbles
a
bit.
Performances
Sanya
Malhotra
is
the
star
performer
of
Pagglait.
As
a
free-spirited
woman
who
is
confused
how
to
deal
with
the
repercussions
of
her
husband's
secret,
the
young
actress
delivers
a
layered
performance
that
seeps
deep
into
your
heart,
one
scene
at
a
time.
Watch
out
for
the
sequence
when
she
meets
Akanksha
(Sayani
Gupta)
for
the
first
time.
Ashutosh
Rana
and
Sheeba
Chaddha
as
bereaved
parents
who
are
still
trying
to
cope
with
their
son's
untimely
demise,
leave
you
with
a
moist-eye
or
a
two.
The
rest
of
the
cast
including
Shruti
Sharma,
Raghubir
Yadav,
Ananya
Khare
and
others
lend
a
strong
support
to
the
film.
Technical
Aspects
Rafey
Mahmood's
camerawork
is
top-notch
and
gives
a
depth
to
the
storytelling.
Prerna
Saigal's
editing
keeps
the
film
tightly-knit.
Music
Raja
Kumari
and
Amrita
Singh's
track
'Pagal'
stands
out
in
the
film
and
delivers
the
feels.
The
rest
of
the
songs
flow
well
with
the
narrative
but
lack
a
recall
value.
Verdict
"Jab
ladki
logo
ko
akal
aati
hai
na,
toh
sab
unhe
Pagglait
hi
kehte
hai!" quips
Sanya
Malhotra's
character
Sandhya
when
realization
finally
dawns
upon
her
as
she
sets
out
to
find
her
true
calling.
Umesh
Bist's
Pagglait
has
its
set
of
crazy
moments,
but
its
heart
is
at
the
right
place.