Mrs. Undercover review: Radhika Apte and Rajesh Sharma make the unevenly executed film a bearable watch

3/5

Story: Radhika Apte's dual life takes a toll on her as she gets a call back from her secret agency for an important mission after being undercover for 10 years and creating her own little family. Regardless of a perfect life, she answers to her duty to nab a serial killer on the loose.

Review: This Anushree Mehta-directed and co-produced spy comedy doesn't begin with a comical or hilarious scene but with a serious and brutal sequence that introduces Sumeet Vyas as the serial killer named "The Common Man," who likes to kill women while advocating women's empowerment. Moving on, the story takes us to the secret agency, which is trying to nab this lethal criminal; however, its last agent gets killed. This makes the head of the operation, Chief Rangeela (played by the versatile Rajesh Sharma), go back to the old files and find out if they still have any of their best agents alive, and that's where he decides to reconnect with Radhika Apte's Durga.

The film further introduces Durga as a mundane housewife who has forgotten her life as a secret agent and is now dedicated to her family. After trying several times with his multiple disguised avatars, the Chief successfully contacts his old agent, only to learn that she is not at all interested in becoming a spy agent again. Mrs. Undercover manages to gather some laughs due to the uncanny and hilarious chemistry between Durga and the Chief.

With his unique body language and adorable personality, Sharma always becomes one of the main factors of amusement in the film and doesn't let a single sequence get dull if he is in it.

On the other hand, Apte surprises with her comic timing and a certain urgency in her character that makes her seem helpless at times yet makes you laugh. Not only the light-hearted sequences but also the powerful actions and stunts done by the gorgeous and talented actress stun you and make you cheer for her.

Meanwhile, Vyas' character is a young, tall, and handsome man who is at the same time a hard-core patriarch and misogynist and who can't stand ladies talking about women's empowerment and education. He goes on dates with girls who advocate for women's rights and then kills them brutally on the same night. The Tripling actor does his part well, and it's quite appealing to watch; however, it appears quite like what he has done in Jaanbaaz Hindustan Ke as a terrorist. Just like in the Srijit Mukherji-directed show, in this film as well, Vyas has the same essence as a criminal: someone who is calm and focused on his mission.

Actors like Saheb Chatterjee and Laboni Sarkar, who predominantly work in Bengali cinema, have also done a fair job.

While most of the actors impress us with their fabulous performances, it's the uneven execution of a good idea that doesn't work. Mrs. Undercover fights multiple social norms at once and advocates equal respect for the housewives, as well as frowning on the misogynistic thinking that is still out there in society and unquestionably well alive in many households.

Even with such great thoughts, the spy comedy drama craves a crisply written script, while the not-so-well execution of the story on the screen disappoints us.

Verdict: Even after the uneven execution and loose script, Mrs. Undercover manages to gather enough attention and some laughter from the viewers. On the other hand, Apte and Sharma accumulate adequate points to make the ZEE5 original film bearable to watch.