"Apurva": A Gritty Survival Drama with Shades of "NH10"

"Mera Naam Apurva Hai" is her clap-worthy concluding line to one of her abductors. 

Indeed, this is Tara Sutaria's finest performance till date and the titular film, which premiered directly on Disney Hotstar this mid-week, will hopefully give her career the much needed boost!! 

Tara plays the about to be married Apurva, who gets abducted from her bus on the Chambal highway. The four sadistic robbers, who take her away just to add some fun element to their night out, don't know whats in the offing for them though!! 

As such, Apurva's plot is pretty much predictable like any survival drama...but it's the execution and the acting department that works in its favour. The film's crisp pace at just one hour thirty five minutes run time is another plus. I was actually reminded of Anushka Sharma’s far superior NH10 (2015) during some chilling moments. And that's a compliment!! 

Expectedly, Abhishek Banerjee and Rajpal Yadav are first rate as the uncouth rabid criminals, who derive perverse pleasure in killing humans -male or female!! Particularly, you will just loathe Banerjee's character as he cares two hoots for even his own gang members... 

The surprise revelation of Apurva is but of course Tara Sutaria, who makes most of the golden opportunity she gets to shoulder an entire movie on her own and comes up trumps at the end of it. Atta Girl!! 

Ratings on some key aspects* : 

1. Acting : 4/5 

2. Direction : 3/5

3. Music : 3/5 

4. Story, Screenplay and Dialogue : 2.5/5

5. Cinematography : 3/5

6. Editing : 3.5/5 

7. Costume Design : 3/5

8. Special Effects and VFX : NA

9. Action : 3.5/5

10. Production Quality : 3/5 

#SNRating for #Apurva : 3 stars out of 5. 

- Sumeet Nadkarni 

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* - The overall film rating is not a simple average of all ratings on key aspects but a weighted average of the ratings where some crucial aspects (like direction, acting, story and screenplay etc) are assigned more weightage than others. 

#Apurva #SurvivalDrama #HindiMovie #BollywoodFilm #TaraSutaria #RajpalYadav #NH10 #AbhishekBannerjee #BollywoodReview #Filmreview #TheatricalRelease #OTTRelease #Hotstar #SNRatings 

#SNRatings barometer:

1 star = Poor

1 & 1/2 star = Below average/ Avoidable

2 stars = Average

2 & 1/2 stars = Above average/ Risk it

3 stars = Good enough/ Endurable

3 & 1/2 stars = Definitely worth a watch

4 stars = Very good

5 stars = Masterpiece/ Outstanding. 

2023 SNRatings.

About Sumeet Nadkarni:

Sumeet Nadkarni is a Chartered Accountant by profession and a self-styled film critic by passion. He reviews Bollywood movies and OTT releases on his popular personal blog #SNRatings. His film-related articles have appeared in leading publications in India. With a keen eye for cinematic detail and a knack for insightful critiques, Sumeet brings a unique perspective to the world of Indian cinema. Follow him for the latest Bollywood insights and unbiased film reviews. #FilmCritique #BollywoodReviewer