My Ratings: 3.5/5.

The word Mardaani if translated means ‘like a man’.

And when such feminist words are used as a film title, there is a high probability that the director goes totally over the board in order to portray the heroics of the on screen femme fatale.

But i must confess that the latest Yash Raj-Pradeep Sarkar collaboration, the film Mardaani is surprisingly balanced and realistic.

Of course you have to endure a few melodramatic action sequences and tacky dialogues from the lead character Shivani Shivaji Roy (Rani Mukerji).

But overall Mardaani never stretches the suspension of our disbeliefs too far (a rare quality in the recent so called commercial Bollywood film genre).

Superb acting by Rani Mukerji and more importantly very good selection of script. Such daring roles (like her character in No one killed Jessica) suits Rani perfectly.

Really impressed by Tahir Raj Bhasin‘s performance who also calls himself Walt (Breaking Bad huh?) and probably one of the coolest villains of our times.

A perfect opponent for the brave senior inspector from crime branch Shivani Shivaji Roy to tussle on throughout the film.

Priyanka Sharma (very natural) and Jisshu Sengupta (though in a cameo) also made their presence felt in Mardaani.

Some of my friends have this feeling that Mardaani is the desi version of Liam Nesson starrer Taken.

Well, i have to admit both the movies are  on children trafficking and in both the films the protagonists go after some organized human traffickers gang when one of their close relation is being kidnapped.

But nevertheless Mardaani has managed to infuse the Indian sentiments and successfully portrayed the horrors of the alarmingly high rate of children trafficking in India.

Finally a film that is based on a serious issue and also handles it in a serious manner.

Director Pradeep Sarkar has done a great job and Rani Mukerji plays a hundred times more realistic cop than the likes of Chulbul Pandey and Bajirao Singham. 

Artur Zurawski done a decent job with the camera and no complains with the editor Sanjib Datta.

Crisp dialogues, fast story telling and decent characterizations make Mardaani enjoyable.

A perfect modern take on the concept of ordinary girls transforming into Goddesses Durga or Kali to vanquish the evils from our society when the need arises.

Worth a watch.

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04E-jHtWrDA