Sui Dhaaga Review - Embroidered With Care.

“Sab badhiya hai.” That’s the line that’s Mauji, played by Varun Dhawan, retorts in many of Sui Dhaaga: Made In India’s scenes. What it essentially symbolises is how Mauji and his wife Mamta strive to be content with whatever little they have. Even when his world is crumbling, Mauji, plastered with an adorable smile, just utters these three words. This could’ve been writer-director Sharat Katariya speaking. Because, essentially, even as this film hits rough patches, Sharat and his tour de force ensemble, march ahead, saying that sab badhiya hai.

Sui Dhaaga tells the story of a married couple, Mauji and Mamta. The two of them are overburdened by societal norms - so much so that they’ve never even shared a meal together. All Mamta can do as she’s ordered around by her mother-in-law, is simply hide behind her ghoongat. Mamta, played by Anushka Sharma, is a fascinating character. She’s both burdened and liberated by her quietude. She doesn’t tussle for money, neither does she speak very much. In fact, during much of the film’s runtime, Mamta’s eyes are a stained red due to her crying. Her husband, Mauji, played by the immensely likeable Varun Dhawan, is the happy-go lucky worker at Bansalji’s sewing machine selling shops.

He wants to engage in conversation with his wife, who has made herself believe that she is worth nothing more than a cook who occasionally strokes egos. These little moments are jam-packed and, that’s why in its first half, Sui Dhaaga soars. Sharat has impeccable control over his characters and the climates he puts them in. Even the effervescent Mauji is bruised and can be unlikable at times. Mamta doesn’t really come into her own until one confrontational scene, but watching her spiral into depression, is inspiring. So, when Mauji and Mamta strive to buy but a simple sewing machine, you watch, with bated breath. That is Sharat’s biggest strength - as shown in his previous work, Dum Laga Ke Haisha (2015).

He has a skill, along with producer Maneesh Sharma, to rouse the drama to a crescendo - when his characters are doing simple, mundane things. His approach here is just as self-aware. Through his characters, he almost taunts us, showing us how easy we have it. So, when Mauji and Mamta, travel 40 kilometres, in the searing, hot sun - Sharat doesn’t spare us. We see the pain and hurt and anguish on their faces with each defeat, but, we indulge in happiness during their smaller victories. Varun Dhawan is fantastic as Mauji. Varun has grown with each performance, be it Sriram Raghavan’s Badlapur (2015), Shoojit Sircar’s October (2018) and now this.

He has a bright energy that instantly draws you in. But, skilful directors like Raghavan, Sircar and now Katariya, turn this hyper-energetic boy over on his head and show us the bruises and the frailty of human life. Varun is endearing and charming, with that never-say-die attitude, Mauji never fails to bring a smile to your face. He is at once irrational, repulsive, but in the end - you can’t help but cheer for him. But it’s no secret that Sui Dhaaga lies with Anushka Sharma, whose brilliant turn as the mopey Mamta, grounds the film - even as Sharat loses his grip over the narrative.

She has a quiet charm to her, that breaks your heart. Sharat gives her a grossly underwritten part, but Mamta shines because Anushka enshrouds her in a morose reality. The other standout performer is Yaamini Das as Mamta’s overbearing mother in law, who comes to terms with the misogyny embedded into the minds of women. Also good is Raghubir Yadav, as Mauji’s bitter father, who just can’t understand why his son would choose passion over practicality. The four of these actors work hard to sell you Sharat’s vision; which is a damn shame, because in its second half, especially with the introduction of a factory and a caricaturish villain, the story becomes mundane and hackneyed, resorting to simplistic resolutions and underdeveloped subplots.

Sharad loses that confidence and Mauji and Mamta’s story loses its spark. There is no more ‘sab badhiya hai’. The distinctive voice of the first half is weighed down by the commercialism thrown at us in the second. But, you will overlook these minor bumps, because Varun Dhawan and Anushka Sharma drive this narrative. They have a heartbreaking innocence to them that you can’t help but root for these underdogs. One might argue that Sui Dhaaga is run-of-the-mill, but though he falters, Sharad injects this story with his signature light-hearted touch.

Sure, the film has loose threads, but it holds together in the end.