Bhakshak review: Story is the hero and so is Bhumi Pednekar, Sanjay Mishra’s chemistry

Bhumi Pednekar has a knack of picking stories. Bhakshak is testament of this decision-making prowess she has as she excels as a young journalist in a small town in Bihar, trying to expose the evils of those in power.

Bhakshak is loosely inspired by the Muzaffarpur shelter home scandal where it was found that a former legislator and his aides were sexually abusing and harassing children in a girls shelter home that came under a state-funded non-governmental organisation.

The Story

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Bhumi Pednekar plays Vaishali, a determined journalist who wants to uncover the dark secrets of an orphanage shelter home after her source lands an audit report stating sexual abuse and loss of lives of girls by those who are running the facility.

Bhumi’s Vaishali then takes it upon her to expose the people associated with it with the help of her cameraperson and partner Bhaskar (played by Sanjay Mishra). They run a channel called Koshish with a new segment on the crimes she’s keen on unfolding called Bhakshak (meaning predator). Sanjay and Bhumi are spectacular together every time they come on screen. Their chemistry sparkles on screen as they form an unbreakable bond which translates to the viewers.

Bhumi plays the convincing journalist who wants to bring a change with her journalism ethic. In backdrop, it’s been established that she’s left a salaried job at a channel to find her own footing. This is in correspondence to the internal struggles the film treads upon – facing a chauvinistic set of in-laws who look down upon her work, her government service employee husband who scolds her for coming home late in the night or not making dinner on time.

Listen to Bhumi Pednekar's exclusive interview here:

Then there’s the outsider eye of the MLA and his aides who sneer and taunt her at first and then warn and threaten her when they are unable to shake her conviction in getting to the root of evil. Aditya Sahu plays a sinister Bansi Sahu, the MLA as he ogles and objectifies the women at every drop of a hat. He does his bidding in dissuading her from uncovering the truth – from threatening her marital life to much more.

The story comes together when Bhumi with no support, no funding and zero tolerance on part of the family, stays true to her grit. She doesn’t take law in her hands but does what a journalist should do – research and uncover the truth. She gets some help from the new DSP (Sai Tamhankar) but Bhumi does most of the footwork since madam has her hands bound by red tape. How she does it, is not the story but what she wants to evoke in the viewer as she gets them is!

Watch Bhakshak trailer here:

What Works and What Doesn't

She’s self-righteous in parts, self-conscious in others. She’s the stuff a good journalist should be made of. What are we without a bit of drama, roadblocks and determination, really?

The film is a great watch and is neatly packaged. Even though it deals with a sensitive matter andtries to teach us andmake us aware of something, not once does it turn preachy and loud. It maintains its undertone of dignity throughout the length.

The film’s climatic monologue by Bhumi is well-deserved but could have varied opinions. It doesn’t assume that the viewer is dumb and doesn’t understand nuances and that’s the best thing about this Pulkit directorial.

Bhakshak is currently streaming on Netflix. It released on February 9.