Even if you missed watching it on Thursday - it's never too late to watch a well crafted narrative.
THE LOGLINE
Naina, a playschool teacher, takes 16 students hostage. Rattling the police and the leaders, her demands send shock waves through the country.
Perfect Logline! Has all the ingredients. The Protagonist, her world and the central conflict are clearly stated.
What I also appreciate here is the honesty - The makers don’t lead you elsewhere with the logline. So as a viewer you know what you are getting into.
STORY IDEA and SCRIPT
A Thursday belongs to a very tried and tested template. A “common man” has been wronged by the system, and he wants the system to know that with a bang.
Very cleverly, here, the writers make it the story of Naina Jaiswal and not only do they give it a whole new treatment but also a very noble cause and Message.
Tell new stories or tell the same stories in a different manner.
Behzad Khambata and Ashley Lobo do the later. And, do it well.
SCREENPLAY
In a long time now, since I started reviewing scripts, I hadn’t come across a screenplay that is so tight and follows almost every rule of screenplay writing.
The first scene and last scene.
The use of silences where dialogues could have spoiled the scenes.
Get late into a scene and leave early.
Show don’t tell.
And more! If you noticed some more let me know in the comments below.
If you are a budding screenwriter, watch it again and learn. Mainstream Bollywood content too could be made with such well carved structure.
Behzad and Ashley do not waste a single page of the screenplay.
Within the first 7 minutes or so into the narrative and we know what 'A Thursday' is all about. I believe the cuts are thought at the writers desk and so the narrative swiftly moves without any lag.
CHARACTER ARC
Naina Jaiswal as a character is so well crafted nothing could have gone wrong. But I cannot not mention that the actor’s underplay of emotions and zero melodrama makes Naina Jaiswal real.
Javed Khan, Catherine Alvarez and some of the other characters may look familiar and inspired but they are aptly used to add to the narrative. They do no harm.
THE PLOT-HOLES
The beauty of a tight narrative is that you don’t notice the plot holes in the first watch. But one obvious plot-hole was - Naina’s fiance Rohit takes a bit too long to reach the location.
DILOGUES
Dialogues by Vijay Maurya are thankfully not very filmy and are grounded in the reality of the characters.
BEST SCENE
I love the scene where Naina’s past is revealed to Rohit and he has no words to express the same but shares a comforting moment with Naina’s mother.
Not a word yet effective.
Also each of the Parent’s reactions - muted. I simply love that.
WORST SCENE
Certain amount of bureaucracy and way too much security needs to be in place before a Prime Minister of a country walks into a situation like this.
ON THE SCRIPTOMETER
It is a script based on an already tried and tested template but very cleverly written. In fact, the writers display certain amount of learned wisdom derived from the forerunners.
On the scriptometer it is a GOOD SCRIPT.
NOZZER PARDIWALA
*Since I review the film from the perspective of the SCRIPT alone, I may not comment on the acting, music, and other aspects of the film,
however exceptional they maybe.
BUT, I cannot resist from mentioning the clever casting of Yami Gautam Dhar as Naina Jaiswal and her nuanced and honest underplaying of the character.
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