Hope movie review: Shwetha Srivatsav makes strong comeback in film about corrupt bureaucracy and struggle for justice

3/5

Story: KAS officer Shivani (Shwetha Srivatsav) is the Assistant Commissioner charged with the responsibility of land acquisition for a National Highway project. Only eight months into her tenure, though, Shivani is transferred out to a relatively obscure department to make way for a corrupt officer instead, who will milk the golden goose that the project is for what it is worth. Sensing that her transfer goes against a government rule that allows an officer a minimum of two years posting to fulfil duties, unless there are complaints against said official, she decides to seek justice in the court of law. But that, it turns out, is easier said than done.

Review: Hope is Shwetha Srivastav’s comeback film; one that she is incredibly proud of. And for good reason. Here, she is Shivani, an honest KAS officer, who attempts to do right by everyone who comes knocking at her door. The problem is that in a world that has a well-oiled corruption mechanism in place, people like her are not welcome. When she is then transferred only eight months into her posting, she thinks it is counts to seek redressal for premature transfer.

And then reality strikes; getting justice is not only a difficult process, but so long drawn out, that by the end of it, you are emotionally, physically and financially exhausted. For the most part, Hope is about Shivani’s attempt for legal recourse in her matter. But all she gets is months and months of postponed hearings, judgements, appeals, and even longer struggles in a higher court.

Amid all this, each time there is a development in the case, she ends up playing musical chairs with the corrupt officer, Varadaraj (Pramod Shetty) who gets her position after her first transfer. Will she be able to get her job back or is a golden goose like a highway-development project too big a deal for Varadaraj to let go off?

The film has an interesting cast line-up, led by Shwetha, with the likes of Pramod, Prakash Belawadi, Ashwin Hassan, Vishal Hegde and Gopalkrishna Deshpande also chipping in with solid performances. Hope is a fairly real portrayal of how bureaucracy and the justice system function, so the narrative may feel a tad tiresome. Director Ambarisha does not resort to cinematic liberties to bring in drama, and makes one wonder if one can still be hopeful in this day and age.

Verdict: Hope is a film for those with the patience to sit through serious subjects, without the frills of commercial entertainers. I am not the most patient in these circumstances, but made it through mostly due to the strong performances and that I had stocked up on enough snacks for the two-and-half-hour outing.