There is a cliche associated with Indian cinema. We think of them as overdramatic, fantastical, musicals. As is the common trend. Dig a little deeper, however, and you come to realize that their filmography has a lot more to offer. Movies like My Name Is Khan, Dangal, or Gully Boy, are examples of how Bollywood has a lot more to showcase than the typical fare that the world is used to. Which brings me to Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway, yet another movie which proves that you don’t need big musical numbers or long drawn out dramatic sequences to deliver a story. Unlike the movies I mentioned earlier, however, this isn’t one you’ll remember after the credits roll.
Back in 2011, the media all over the world were reporting on a case about a mother, Ms. Sagarika Chakraborty, who was fighting tooth and nail to regain custody of her two children, who had been unceremoniously taken from her by the Norwegian child welfare services. They claimed that her home was an unsafe environment for children as they shared the same bed and used their hands to eat. It was a case that showcased the clash of cultures between East and West, and one that caused the Indian government to eventually step in. It was a story that was made to be adapted for the screen, and sure enough, a decade later, here we are.
Maternal Mayhem
The biggest problem with this movie lies in the characterization of Mrs. Chatterjee. While director Ashima Chibber had the option to deliver a deep, rich tale of the hoops that Mrs. Chatterjee had to jump through in order to get back her children, what we got was was an overwrought film that paints her as a dramatic, reckless woman who acts on impulse at every turn.
Bollywood legend, Rani Mukerji, delivers an outstanding performance in the titular role, but her craft was unfortunately let down by relatively sub-par writing and strange directorial choices that will make you question every decision that she makes. I spent the movie wondering if she even has a brain. It’s a horrible thought, especially given the circumstances she’s going through, but an inescapable one when a movie is painted with that very stereotypical male gaze of how a woman just isn’t capable of making decisions properly without the assistance of her husband.
Throughout the movie, Mrs. Chatterjee is constantly berated by her husband and lawyers about how she’s the reason the children were taken away and that the case will be lost because of her. All of it is incredibly painful to watch given that there seems to be absolutely no sympathy for a mother who just had her heart and soul ripped away from her. This is an incredibly well educated woman who the writers have portrayed as being mentally unstable and incapable of making important decisions on her own. It is unforgivable and a huge disservice to her real-life counterpart.
It Should Have Been a Courtroom Drama
Rani Mukerji carries the entire film on her back, and if there is one reason to sit through this excruciating story, it would be for her. Mukerji does what she does best and proves once again why she is a beloved award-winning actress in India. Despite the middling script, she delivers a performance that is truly gut wrenching. As the story unfolds, you feel every ounce of pain and suffering she’s going through and yet, behind those eyes, you can see a fire burning. She is unwilling to give up and will do whatever it takes to get her babies back. It’s a performance that is so incredibly engaging and one that you cannot take your eyes off. Not even for a second. Rani does justice to the real life subject and genuinely delivers a pain and love that I think all mothers can relate to and will definitely shed a tear for.
While I found the movie disappointing on the whole, it was compounded by the fact that the third act took a brilliant turn and highlighted everything that the movie should have been. While there is a lot of time spent highlighting the struggle that Mrs. Chatterjee had to go through – for obvious reasons – the most exciting aspect of the movie, the courtroom drama side of it, fell by the wayside. But as we move to India for its final moments, and get brought into a 30-minute courtroom sequence, the movie suddenly starts to shine.
You are now at the edge of your seat. With every testimony, you are left gripped and wondering which way the case would go. This is when it got exciting. Yes, we understand she is going through a lot of pain, but the momentum in a movie like this lies in how she overcomes it. Show us how she used every hearing to strengthen her argument and fight. Show us how with every lawyer, she fought even harder and harder. If we had gotten more of that, this could have been a much better movie.
Surely There’s Someone Making a Documentary?
Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway, while not an entirely horrible watch, is definitely a painful one. We don’t need to see yet another film telling us how a woman cannot make decisions on her own, or how men are just utter and complete assholes. While the film does eventually show us how strong she can be in her own right, with Rani delivering a wonderful monologue at the end, it doesn’t make up for the 90 minutes we just spent watching her get beat down by her husband and lawyers.
We know that a mother’s love knows no bounds, but surely there was a better way to deliver that message. Women are as strong, if not stronger, than their male counterparts, and it just didn’t come across in this movie. Which was incredibly frustrating. My only hope is that this isn’t the last project made about this story, because I believe Mrs. Chakraborty deserves better than this.
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