Aishwarya Rai makes her comeback after being away from the big screen for 5 years, and Sanjay Gupta is back after the mediocre Shootout At Wadala. So expectations for Jazbaa are not humongous, but they are above average because both actor and filmmaker boast of a pretty good resume. And for the most part Jazbaa is a highly watchable, and enjoyable thriller. Its not very edge of the seat, maybe barring a scene or two, but the acting makes up for those minuses, with a cast that includes of Irfan Khan, and Shabana Azmi you will more than enjoy the performances. But Jazbaa is somewhere stuck between being, a realistic gritty drama, and a over the top commercial entertainer.This is because there many cheesy over the top dialogues,the films melodramatic to the core, and logic takes a back seat at many times. But when Mr. Khan enters the scene the film gets some credibility back. Also the films final message is a good one, but more on that later.
Story wise the film is about a lawyer named Anuradha Verma, who believes in fighting cases for money, therefore most of time she is setting murders and other criminals free. She has a impeccable record, Anuradha Verma is one of the best lawyers in India.One day while at her daughters track meet at school, her daughter gets kidnapped out nowhere. Anuradha is then left in tears, and about a day later she gets a call from a unknown person saying that if she wants her daughter back, she has to fight a case, and make sure a murder, and rapist is set free. She then with help of her friend the suspended police Inspector Yohan, try to free the murder/rapist, and get her daughter back.
Acting wise Aishwarya Rai, was very good, but at times she is very loud and melodramatic, but I guess that was the directors demand. Irfan Khan was at his massy hero best, and delivered the over the top dialogues with flair. Shabana Azmi, was great, but in the films climax, she her real fire. Chandan Roy Sanyal was good.
Jazbaa is very over the top, its very melodramatic, and its dialogues are hit or miss, at times fiery, at times so cheesy you will end up laughing. But all that is fine for a commercial entertainer, but where the film fails is that films twists don't really ever leave you stunned, and the films climax twist is a joke, it didn't work for me. And Abhimanyu Singh's character Abbas is just so bad its hilarious, like straight out of 80s bwood film. But a lot of the ground is made up by the good acting, and the films razor sharp edit, its racy narration film. Also the film never bores, its very enjoyable for the most part, and its shot very in a very niche but nice way.The films final message of the fight against rape in India is a great message that needs to be applauded.
Overall Jazbaa is a one time watch, but one excepts more from Sanjay Gupta, because he is the man who made films like Kaante, Plan, and Musfair etc but I mean for the masses, and women wanting to watch a film thats speaks about women empowerment, Jazbaa will be a very enjoyable watch, just keep your expectations in check.