Janiva Movie Review

It is a most challenging job, to make a film which is based on a true story. Utmost care is to be taken at the level of screenplay and direction, to see that it doesn’t end up looking like a documentary. Actually in such cinematic versions, the essence of the story is to be kept in mind while offering entertainment. Latest released film ‘Janiva’ was therefore a challenge, as it was based on the tragic sufferings of the late Aruna Shanbaug. But has the film been able to convey this sensitive issue through this social film? Frankly speaking, it has turned out to be an average film.

Samir Deshpande (Satya Manjrekar), an 18 year old youngster from a well-to-do family, gets disturbed after reading about the sufferings of rape victim Aruna Shanbaug. He comes across this unfortunate happening on the internet, and he delves into details of the case. We also see him being tried in a murder case simultaneously, which generates some curiosity. How his lawyer (Renuka Shahane) fights his case, is what the film is about.
 
Director Rajesh Ranahinge, who is well versed with handling such subjects on television, has used his skills in presentation of important scenes. The producers of the film are Milind Vishnu, Arvind Kumar, Reshama Vishnu and Srman Jain. The film is produced by Blue Eye Productions and presented by Angel's Production. They seem have spent a lot on this production, which is clearly noticed.

The film revolves around the central character played by Satya Manjrekar. It was noticed that his voice was dubbed by someone else, which sounded like Sachin Pilgaonkar. But the director clarified after the show that it was not Sachin’s voice, but a dubbing artist’s. In the film there are other youngsters comprising of Vaibhavi Shandilya, Anuradha Mukherjee, Devdatt Dani and Sanket Agarwal, who have played his friends. Good support comes from Kiran Karmarkar and Indira Krishnan, who have played his parents.

The film presents good arguments in the court, between Public Prosecutor (Kishore Kadam) and the clever defense lawyer Renuka Shahane. In this battle in court, Renuka Shahane has impressed with her tricky arguments. Harshavardhan Dixit’s music on the lyrics of Mangesh Kangne is impressive, particularly in two songs. While offering average entertainment, the director has kept in mind social responsibility. Now it remains to be seen how the Marathi audience will respond to this film.