In Pulkit’s Bhakshak, Bhumi Pednekar plays a journalist named Vaishali, who runs her own TV channel in Patna. There is one other person in her team, and that is her cameraman, played by Sanjay Mishra. The channel has not really taken off in its three years of existence, a fact pointed out by Vaishali’s husband. She replies that we give the government five years to make good on their promises, so why should she get only three! On the personal front, things are no better. The extended family does not think much of Vaishali’s attempt to work, and they keep asking when she is going to have a baby. But Vaishali is determined to do something – not just for personal fame and glory, but because she believes she can make a difference. At one point, she is told, “Hum patrakar hain police wale nahin…” But her logic is that the police are not doing anything and someone has to.
Vaishali gets her big break when one of her sources gives her a social audit report that points to young girls being abused in a shelter home. She begins to investigate, and she gets threats from a big shot who runs a chain of newspapers in which all government ads are printed. Plus, even the Chief Minister goes to his son’s birthday parties. This is where Bhakshak begins to lose steam. After this development, we know we are squarely in David vs. Goliath territory. We know Vaishali will face many more difficulties, and yet, she will bring down the bad guys. What makes the movie even more predictable is a flashback (from a witness) that tells us every single thing that happens inside the girls’ shelter home. This removes every bit of surprise and suspense from the what part of the story: What exactly is going on over there? So the only thing left is the how: How will Vaishali do what she needs to do!
And this angle, too, is disappointing. There is some minor intrigue about who filed a PIL, but otherwise, there is nothing that we cannot see coming from a mile away. Bhakshak is not bad – the unflashy filmmaking is nicely atmospheric, and the performances are sincere. You can feel the outrage that the makers feel about all this, taken from a real-life incident. But this emotion has to be shaped into something that offers a unique cinematic experience. When Vaishali’s husband asks why she is doing this when it is not their (figurative) daughter, she yells back that if they don’t act now, then tomorrow they may face a similar fate with their daughter. If this is not exactly the newest of lines, what do you make of this one? A rapist who stubs out cigarettes on girls is told: “Ladki andar ki aag bujhane ke liye hoti hain - cigarette bujhane ke liye nahin!” Bhakshak is further proof that, when it comes to cinema, good intentions aren’t good enough.