Tribhanga

Though wanted to watch this movie, since I heard about it, even before it's release, the time was only now. Cause we never had Netflix at home. Finally decided to get into it in 2022. Renuka Shahane's directorial 'Tribhanga' also written by her, released for the viewers on January 15, 2021, a year now already. Tribhanga - Tedhi Medhi Crazy is still streaming on Netflix and so could not resist. Renuka Shahane has mentioned that there are many parts of the film which are related to her personal experiences and her life but is not autobiographical. The heart-warming tale is backed by Ajay Devgn in collaboration with Bannijay Asia and Siddharth P Malhotra's Alchemy Films.

The plot of the film revolves around a dysfunctional family of three women and their unconventional life choices. Tanvi Azmi is Nayantara, an acclaimed writer and mother of Anuradha (enacted by Kajol). Anuradha, a Bollywood actor-dancer, is as complex and fierce as her mother and also a single mother. Mithali Palkar, who is playing Masha (Anuradha’s daughter), is different from the rest of the women in her family. She is a housewife who is willing to comprise on anything to have the “normal” life that she was deprived of.

‘Tribhanga’: Mother knows best? Or as the maker herself explains through the language of dance: Nayantara is Abhanga, a slightly mad genius; Mashsa is Samabhanga, completely balanced; and Anuradha is skewed and weird, she is Tribhanga. 

A brain stroke that puts Nayantara in a coma then forces the broken family to reunite and deal with their differences. Anu, Kajol resents her writer mother Nayantara Apte / Tanvi Azmi. The third generation daughter, Masha /Mithila Palkar  is about to have a baby. The three generations and their life choices are what make up the movie’s plot. The film explores the dynamics and complexities of a mother-daughter relationship. A self-made single mom  grapples with regret and resentment while reflecting on their strained relationship. Kajol says she is genius so ajeeb. The film however incorporates multiple elements – there is sexual assault, domestic violence, and professional aspirations – to justify the sour dynamics between the central characters. Anu did not feel safe in own house because of her mother. Her mother did not know this. Early on in the film, Kunaal Roy Kapur as Milan (a writer who is helping Nayantara on her autobiography), describes Anuradha as, “rude and stony-hearted.” What he misses adding is that she is also a tad bit irritating. There is the beautifully-enacted segment between Anuradha and her mother Nayantara, where the fragile frugality of emotions is heartfelt. 

A little about the much loved Renuka Shahane and her family from Wikipedia:

Her mother "Shanta Gokhale was married to Lt. Cdr. Vijaykumar Shahane, with whom she has two children, Girish Shahane, and noted film and television actress, Renuka Shahane. After their divorce, she was briefly married to noted filmmaker Arun Khopkar. She currently lives in Lalit Estate, Shivaji Park, Mumbai, with her two helpers, Alka Dhulap and Sanjay Pashte, and is neighbours with Jerry Pinto. Over the years, Gokhale has served as a mentor for many, including poet Arundhathi Subramaniam.

Renuka has been married twice. Her first marriage was to Vijay Kenkare, a Marathi theater writer and director, but the marriage did not last long and they were soon divorced. She then married Ashutosh Rana (original name Ashutosh Neekhra), who is also a Bollywood actor.They have two sons, namely Shauryaman Neekhra and Satyendra Neekhra.