Daah: Ek Marmsparshi Katha review – This social drama is an assault on the senses

Many say being a film critic is the easiest job ever. Not only does one get to watch films free, one actually gets paid for it. While this is true to an extent, the mental torture one goes through while watching a film like Daah: Ek Marmsparshi Katha is enough to make you want to give it all up.

Some films make you wonder how they ever got greenlit. Daah is one of those films. Basically it is an assault on the senses.

Disha (Sayali Sanjeev) is the daughter of Dr Sane (Girish Oak) and Mrs Sane (Radhika Vidyasagar). She is in the final year of medical college. Our hero, Sameer Bhosle (Suhrud Wardekar), is a US-returned doctor. In the first few minutes of the film, they confess their love and we are told that they are friends from childhood. Sameer's parents Mr Bhosle (Yatin Karyekar) and Mrs Bhosle (Uma Sardeshmukh) are also happy with this relationship and decide to get the two married, but just before the interval a huge twist happens (which the audience would have guessed at the beginning itself).

After the interval, the film switches tracks and tries to become a serious drama dealing with various social issues like casteism, alcoholism, blind faith and more. But it fails to address even a single issue with sincerity.

The biggest problem with such films is that the makers think they are performing social service by addressing serious social issues. All they are doing is making a mockery of some critical problems.

If I were to explain all the problems I had with the film, I may overshoot the word limit for this review, so I will spare you, dear reader, the trouble and keep it brief. The problem begins at the conceptual level itself. The film's subject is outdated, the treatment more so. From the very first frame, you can guess what kind of mental torture awaits you, and screenwriters Unman Bankar and Kaustubh Sawarkar do not disappoint you. If anything, they surpass your expectations, such is their writing finesse.

When Disha sets up a free clinic in a small village, we are not told how she raised the money to buy the expensive equipment and medicines. Or how her mother suddenly turns cold towards her daughter? Daah is filled with so many unfathomable scenarios and illogical loopholes that it is impossible to take any social issue presented in the film seriously.

What makes the film even more unwatchable is the direction and the performances. Experienced artistes like Girish Oak and Uma Sardeshmukh try their best to give sensible performances, but it is a lost cause. Even the lead pair of Sayali Sanjeev and Suhrud Wardekar is disappointing with its one-note acting.

This is Malhar Ganesh's first film as director and, frankly, it is an utterly amateurish attempt. Even basics like shot division scream that out, never mind other technical aspects like cinematography and editing. There is literally no flow to the script in the second half. Scenes are cut abruptly without explanation. Big problems are resolved in a matter of minutes. Everything is a mess here. You would be best advised to avoid this horrendous experience.