Sanjay Dutt’s portrayal of a doting father is a little extra, but we believe that is what it was aimed at. So is Sharad Kelkar’s act of a political goon. He reminds you slightly of Prem Chopra’s rapist goons. Aditi Rao Hydari, however, is playing a character that hasn’t been penned properly for her. The actress’ caliber is the only thing that makes you believe in her character as much as she does. Though we believe, the movie could have a less patriarchal approach to the whole rape-revenge concept, Dutt and Hydari make it a good watch. You’ll enjoy it if you leave the critic in your home.

If you thought that Bollywood was attempting feminist films in a mature way, after Pink, Bhoomi makes you think otherwise. There was enough hype around Bhoomi, as it was Sanjay Dutt's comeback film. Well, he could have waited a little longer. Cut to the essentials, the film is intended to be a drama about a father taking revenge for his daughter's mistreatment. Except, this is done in Bollywood style, involving gundas, glitzy item songs with Sunny Leone, and an overdose of emotion, which the weary audience is just not able to relate to. Bhoomi is a very tragic and botched attempt at carrying feminism forward, as our lead actress doesn't seem have much to do or say, except look helpless from the word go to the end credits. Dutt acts well, as a bloodthirsty father, but that's about it. Oh wait, forgot to mention, there's Shekhar Suman too, who plays the best drunk friend. He cracks some clearly miss-able Japanese and Chinese racist jokes too. The film once again, reiterates the age-old idea, that there is always a man to save a girl, because she clearly seems helpless to do so otherwise. Oh Bollywood, when will you learn?

Sanjay Dutt’s umpteenth ‘comeback’ is a 70s style worn-out rape and revenge film, reeking of staleness. Under the guise of striking a blow for feminism, Bhoomi is, mostly, disturbingly voyeuristic. You do not expect a here-today film to use the phrase character-less, that old, hoary terms of reference, to define a girl who has the courage to complain with such emphasis. Hydari’s character is made to cry silently in mortification. And the viewers behind me were snickering the whole time: if you want to truly change the narrative, you have to be very careful of the languaging around rape, and the incredibly complex feelings of rage and helplessness and shame that surrounds a survivor like a miasma. Making us laugh should not be part of the game. Dutt’s face is kept in close-up for much of the film, and there is still power in it. This is an actor who can explode off the screen, given the right story. Maybe he needs something better told to vent his anger. Or maybe he needs to come back as Munna bhai to give us the lessons we love to learn.

Distasteful as it may sound, rape and retribution seem to dominating Bollywood. After Maatr and Mom, Omung Kumar, who showed a spark with Mary Kom, seems to have fallen into the trap of making formula. And while every filmmaker argues that movies on rapes are 'socially-relevant'; you keep asking yourself—is all the gore on screen justified. Here, our very own Arun and Bhoomi are a doting father-daughter team living in Agra. They tug at your heartstrings with their chirpybaap-beti routine of cooking meals, colouring beards and combing hair. However, after a point the bittu-beti endearments rankle. But that's not the only thing that rankles here. But like it's said, every cloud has a silver living; Bhoomi has Sanjay Dutt. Returning to the marquee after his incarceration, the actor wears the lines of his face with confidence. You can tell right away that the lion has aged but he's got terrific screen presence. Aditi is also remarkable, first as the stuttering, sweet girl and later as the woman seeking revenge. Sharad is too much the caricatured villain from the 80s, mouthing stupid lines. The overall writing is clunky. Artur Zurawski's camera work is efficient. Sachin-Jigar have composed a couple of foot-tapping numbers that don't necessarily have recall but when they are playing, you find yourself grooving. Watch Bhoomi for Dutt. He's from that era of larger-than-life heroes who get you to whistle even when he is killing people. You may not approve of his thirst for blood but you can't fault his swagger.