Yami Gautam’s A Thursday is an intriguing thriller drama high on emotions with a stellar cast rendering powerful performances. The film is now streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
A THURSDAY REVIEW: PLOT, CAST AND SUSPENSE
Rating: 4/5
Director: Behzad Khambata
Cast: Yami Gautam, Atul Kulkarni, Neha Dhupia and Dimple Kapadia
A Thursday is a thriller drama that revolves around a playschool teacher, Naina Jaiswal played by Yami Gautam, who hostages school children to make her demands fulfilled by the Prime Minister. She even threatens to kill the kids one by one, if government refuses so. This film is a spirited sequel to Neeraj Pandey’s A Wednesday, released in 2008.
STORYLINE OF A THURSDAY
On a Thursday morning, a school teacher, Naina Jaiswal, suddenly hostages 16 children with a motive to set a meeting with the Prime Minister. The Mumbai police, led by Catherine Alwaris (Neha Dhupia) with deputy officer Javed Khan (Atul Kulkarni), had a hard time as her demand arose one by one. Naina’s secret motive to keep the children on gunpoint will keep you hold your seats.
The fear of children being harmed amongst the anxious parents and the police force makes every single demand of Naina satisfied. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister (Dimple Kapadia) agrees to meet her to protect the lives of the kids been abducted.
SUSPENSE OF A THURSDAY
You just can’t help, but feel sorry for Naina in the end. Why? What was the motive of Naina Jaiswal? Being such an amiable person, why did she become such a cold-hearted psycho woman? A Thursday brings along varied emotions and numerous twists as we come to know the rationale behind Naina’s act of abducting the little kids.
While Catherine discovers Naina has been taking antidepressants since 16 years, Javed Khan finds her mother, who revealed that the duo cops did not make any efforts to find the rapist of Naina a few years ago. Trauma and violence overrun the film, but in a good way. The gripping twists and mystery of the protagonist will keep you hooked until the end.
STAR CAST OF A THURSDAY
The stellar cast of the thriller drama did justice to every character. Yami Gautam’s intense and psycho character with emotional aspects reformed her acting chops distinct from her mainstream roles. Neha Dhupia portrays a powerful female character on the screen, leading the police force.
Atul Kulkarni tries to rectify his past mistakes being a responsible police officer. Dimple Kapadia aptly fits in the role of the Prime Minister. Ashley Michael Lobo and Behzad Kambata’s screenplay is quite enthralling.
A Thursday, to some degree, reminds us about Neeraj Pandey’s A Wednesday featuring Naseeruddin Shah, Jimmy Shergill and Anupam Kher. However, the two aren’t comparable, as they have different plots. In conclusion, A Thursday is a highly recommended film of the week, as it gives rise to a new kind of thriller genre on Indian screens.