A Thursday Review

Movie Plot

At the Little Tots play school in Colaba, Naina Jaiswal, a teacher, takes a mysterious three-week leave of absence. The school is situated on Rohit Mirchandani's land, where he also dwells as Naina's fianc�. Naina wants a cake for Niharika's forthcoming birthday and asks their driver to bring it during the parents' drop-off. As everyone departs, Naina experiences a mental breakdown that causes her to become ferociously determined. The instructor from Little Tots play school, Naina Jaiswal, contacts the Colaba police station and says she is holding 16 kids, hostage.

Niharika's driver shows up with a cake, and regrettably, Savitri, the assistant, goes back to get her lost phone. Naina is forced to keep them hostage. Naina fires a shot to show the police she is serious when they come to assess the situation. Naina is contacted by ACP Catherine Alvarez, but she won't talk to anyone other than Officer Javed Khan. When Javed Khan arrives on the scene, he joins Naina in her deadly game. She proclaims that she will free one child for each demand that is complied with. Her initial demand is a deposit into her account worth five crore rupees. Catherine Alvarez and Javed Khan have a tense working relationship as a result of their prior disputes.

Aakash, the first child in alphabetical order, dies tragically as a result of Catherine disobeying Javed's advice and sending armed cops instead. The police commissioner gives Javed full authority while tasking Catherine with a background investigation to address the issues preventing the situation from moving further. The next thing Naina wants is to speak with the prime minister. The forces give in to her demand because of their inability to come up with a solution. During their phone conversation, Naina begs Prime Minister Maya Rajguru to personally meet with her. She further requests that Javed Khan tracks down Rakesh Mathur and Charan Kumar, two people she remembers working at the BWC school in Goregaon. Rakesh Mathur is found by the police, but Charan Kumar is hard to find. Javed Khan and his crew are forced to abide by Naina's demands despite being unaware of her motivations in order to protect the kids in her care.

The third thing Naina wants is a one-on-one meeting with the prime minister. Naina and Prime Minister Maya Rajguru have a phone chat, during which Naina requests a face-to-face meeting. Meanwhile, Rakesh Mathur and Charan Kumar, who had previously been connected to the BWC school in Goregaon, are to be found and brought in, as per Naina's instructions to Javed Khan.

Rakesh Mathur is found, while Charan Kumar is still untraceable. Javed Khan and his colleagues grudgingly comply with Naina's requests because they are concerned for the children's safety and are unsure of Naina's motivations. Catherine discovers Naina's long-term use of antidepressants and therapy since she was 16 years old during the background investigation, which is backed by receipts for the prescription that Dr. Juneja provided. Javed Khan contacts Naina's mother, and she makes contact with Dr. Juneja.

The evidence shows a shocking fact: Javed Khan and Catherine were involved in Naina's rape when she was 16 years old. However, because of their attention to a well-known case, they failed to notice Naina's predicament. Naina's trauma went untreated despite her mother's pleadings, leaving her mother to manage on her own. Javed Khan and Prime Minister Maya Rajguru decide to travel to see Naina in person. The POCSO Act, which was passed in 2012 to safeguard minors under the age of 18, was brought up by Naina. Why are there no provisions for adults, she wonders.

Naina requests reassurance from the prime minister that her assailants will be executed. The Prime Minister realizes the difficulty of changing legislation, but she pledges to see to it that the offenders are found and punished. Naina discloses that Charan Kumar was the same person who delivered Niharika's cake and served as the family's driver after the police could not locate him.

Naina created a strategy because she was concerned that he might hurt Niharika. She requests Niharika's mother to send the cake-carrying driver, who earlier attacked Naina when Rakesh Mathur was holding her hands. In revenge, Naina shoots Charan Kumar, and the commandos then take her into custody. In the meantime, Maya Rajguru speaks in parliament about the death penalty. Naina reads a newspaper headline months later while instructing inmates there. She smiles and thinks back on what happened.

Review

India Times

Women are no longer merely used as props or helpless characters in the changing cinematic world. Stories are being developed to highlight their complexity and importance. Yami Gautam Dhar is given a difficult character by director Behzad Khambata that allows her to demonstrate strength via ambiguity and stillness. Atul Kulkarni, Dimple Kapadia, and Neha Dhupia all give strong performances.

A Thursday successfully communicates underlying feelings. The movie uses social media as a storytelling tool and addresses current social issues. Additionally, it provides insights into news sensationalism and clickbait journalism. Despite some of its obvious elements, A Thursday succeeds in sending a strong message to women all over the world.

Hindustan Times

A Thursday, a movie billed as a sequel to A Wednesday, stars Yami Gautam. In it, a playschool teacher named Naina kidnaps kids and holds them captive while demanding a sizable ransom and a meeting with the prime minister. Neha Dhupia and Atul Kulkarni portray the detectives on the case. While the movie benefits from its premise and establishes a tense atmosphere, it also has a number of flaws. While Kulkarni's acting is overly dramatic, Gautam's portrayal of Naina seems like a horror movie villain. In India after Modi, Dimple Kapadia's portrayal of a gullible prime minister is challenging to accept. The dialogue and poor screenplay are further factors in the movie's shortcomings. Although director Behzad Khambata skillfully stages some sequences, the overall flow of the movie is predictable. The writing is weak and unrealistic in some places, such as how it handles internet connectivity.