Unpaused

Finally we are staring at another productive weekend. And with it comes a fresh set of releases. This weekend is special with not one but two anthology films being released. We are ready with an early bird review of the first one! And so I have just finished watching Unpaused on Amazon Prime. Comprising of five stories by five directors, each story is set against the backdrop of the pandemic. So lets dig in to its review in our fixed Anthology Review Template !

Glitch – The story about two individuals, polar opposites, falling for each other in a futuristic timeline against the backdrop of a pandemic. I just loved the concept here. The screenplay is relatively simple and it heavily relies on the concept to take things forward, but it works pretty well. Director Raj and DK are one of my favourite director duo who have always tried out different concepts onscreen, their direction is outstanding here. Saiyami Kher and Gulshan Devaiah both are excellent performers and have done a swell job here. 

Unpaused Story 1 Rating: 3.5/5!

The Apartment – The story of a woman tired of the stuff going on in her life, decides to put an end to her life. Does she succeed or is there light at the end of a tunnel? The story is decent here, though I found it the weakest of the lot. The background of COVID-19 didn’t really play a part here, I mean this could have been set in any timeline. The screenplay is decent again(although patchy) but the end was a good one. Director Nikkhil Advani has done a decent job. The performances are the highlight here with Sumeet Vyas, Mahathi Ramesh(who was very impressive), Dilnaz Irani and Ishwak Singh lending good support. But the show belonged to Richa Chadha who added a layer of complexity to her character.

Unpaused Story 2 Rating: 3/5!

Rat-A-Rat – The story of an elderly lonely women who befriends a young girl during the pandemic. The story is indeed heartwarming and it definitely melts your heart. The screenplay is light and breezy with loads of emotions packed in it. Director Tanishtha Chatterjee has done an excellent job with the direction. The Talented Rinku Rajguru and The Veteran Lillette Dubey(such a pleasure to watch her always) have given brilliant performances. 

Unpaused Story 3 Rating: 4/5!

Vishaanu – The best story out of the five is this one. Pandemic in our country brought along with it another important issue of the migrant workers, where so many of them had to set on a seemingly impossible journey on foot to their villages, with little to no help from the authorities. The story is based on this hardship during the pandemic of one such labourer and his family. The screenplay is so well written, you almost feel the pain of the protagonist and also a sense of helplessness. The writing also gives a human side to them – they too want to enjoy and have a good time. Very well written. Director Avinash Arun(who was the co-director of Paatal Lok) has done an outstanding job here. Hemant Kher(last seen in Scam 1992) shines in a cameo. The performances of Geetika Vidya and Abhishek Banerjee are the ones to savour. Outstanding acting! 

Unpaused Story 4 Rating: 4.5/5

Chand Mubarak – The last two stories take the cake. Another human story of an unmarried elderly woman and an autorickshaw driver during the pandemic. So heartwarming and believable. The screenplay will leave a wide smile on your face. Just perfectly written screenplay! Nitya Mehra has done such a fine job in the direction department. But it is the performances that steal the show, I felt the best out of the five stories. Ratna Pathak Shah is always a joy to watch, she totally commands your attention. But my pick of the actors is Shardul Bharadwaj. What a fine actor, what an outstanding performance. Last seen in Eeb Allay Ooo(which releases today in theatres, review up do give it a read), he is equally brilliant here!

Unpaused Story 5 Rating: 4.5/5!

Unpaused is another green tick in the anthology genre. Available on Amazon Prime and Highly Recommended!