Bhotbhoti review: Rishav Basu, Bibriti Chatterjee and others present a long and incomprehensive narration

2.5/5

Story: Bhotbhoti (Rishav Basu) – a resident of a slum near Ganga – believes in mermaids. One day, he rescues Rita Mahato (Bibriti) from the waterbody and believes her to be the mermaid he was looking for. Rita and Bhotbhoti get involved in terrorist activities.

Review: Evidently, Tathagata Mukherjee tries to paint a picture of love and revolution. Several surreal scenes in the film indicate that. At the same time, he brings in glimpses of bloodshed in pursuit of a better world.

However, the film falters due to its weak storyline and screenplay. It doesn’t have an epicentre. Sometimes, it feels like a story of the eviction of slum dwellers. The next moment it becomes a fantasy love story. Next shot, the film shows a young boy and girl trying to escape a supari killer and finally it also becomes a cat and mouse chase between the young couple and cops. The moot point is, that the film tries to touch upon a series of fragmented and disjointed stories that fail to get together for a comprehensive narration.

The screenplay suffers from a similar problem of lack of coordination. The film is two hours and 50 minutes long and becomes really boring. It is plagued with pointless dialogues and representations of scenes. Unrealistic fight sequences and a series of questions hang in the air. We just don't know why the rebels let Bhotbhoti go despite apprehending him at their den. Why do they appoint a supari killer (Anirban Chakrabarti) to kill them? Why does an elderly couple (Dipankar De and Mamata Shankar) pick a fight with cops to save little-known Bhotbhoti and Rita? Also, the description of revolutionaries, their den, meetings, and oath-taking ceremonies are far from realistic, and as a result, laughable. Similarly, it makes no sense why a tribal girl, who has limited exposure to the outer world, speaks fluent Santipuri Bengali.

Then comes the overtly expressive Bhotbhoti. The character can be differently abled. But his expression has to impact the audience. Instead, we see a loud and irrational man overacting all through the film. Along with him, comes the naivety of his neighbours. They all gather to see a mermaid and then crib about why she doesn’t have wings.

Bibriti looks stunning on screen. It is not that she acts well. Rather unnecessarily she breathes heavily and widens her eyes to express emotions. However, her screen presence is riveting.

Also, there are some memorable and magical shots. The shots of Kans grass field where Bhotbhoti and Rita walk around or the fight sequence at a gas station look truly magical. Such scenes show that perhaps Tathagata can present a visual treat if he gets the story and screenplay by his side.

Meanwhile, there are many veteran actors in the film, But they are underutilised and hence, look redundant. There are Rajatava Dutta, Monu Mukhopadhyay, Debolina Dutta and others. They barely get any space to explore their characters. Debolina looks loud. Anirban, Dipankar De and Mamata Shankar’s characters defy every logic and hence, it becomes a sad wastage of potential.

Verdict: Bhotbhoti could have been a soothing surreal film. However, with the terrorism, entry of a supari killer and cops, it turns into a long and incomprehensive narration that leads the audience nowhere.