‘A Thursday’ Review: Women Leads Offer It Depth, But Message Fails To Hit

Trigger Warning: Sexual violence, Caste-based atrocities/Disclaimer: The article contains minor spoilers

I couldn’t miss another second before penning this review after watching ‘A Thursday’ on Disney+ Hotstar. It is a compelling film backed by a strong script, solid acting, and cinematography. Like ‘A Wednesday’, ‘A Thursday’ shows an anti-hero making a statement because they were forced into a difficult position.

Naina (Yami Gautham) holds 16 children as hostages and makes different demands to the Mumbai police, including a hefty ransom. She also kidnaps a domestic worker and a driver. The film then follows police officers, including the ‘super cop’ Javed Khan (Atul Kulkarni) and Catherine’s (Neha Dhupia) attempts to diffuse the situation.

One might watch this film with a sense of scepticism and ask questions like, why is it too easy for Naina to have the upper hand compared to the police with all their resources? Is it easy for her to get the Prime Minister of India’s attention? Wouldn’t the authorities take up brutal tactics to apprehend her earlier?

Why I Laud The Film?

A Female Anti-Hero With A Voice

I laud the makers for creating a compelling female anti-hero. We have seen characters like Indian (Kamal Haasan), Anniyan (Vikram), and many other male anti-heroes doing similar acts to put out a message. Naina’s story cannot be compared to the male counterparts due to the way the characters are written and the marketing of the films.

She is a woman who took up a large platform through her criminal act to make an important statement. But, in her words, no one will listen to her unless she screams very close to their ears in her own words.

Finally, Indian cinema has embraced the idea of writing a female character who doesn’t fall into either side of morality. Aarya (Sushmita Sen) is a person with grey shades, a strong character arc, and story development. ‘Aarya’ is also precisely what Sushmita Sen needed to make it through an industry that still imposes sexist standards like shelf life and stereotyping of women.

Yami Gautham is an outstanding actress, and she has proved her mettle through films such as ‘Vicky Donor’, ‘Kaabil,’ and ‘Uri: Surgical Strike.’ Still, she needed that one performance, and ‘A Thursday’s Naina helped her exploit her capabilities. The piercing stare behind her sweet smile presents Naina’s personality. We see glimpses of guilt during her conversations with the authorities. Yami understood the assignment and did a good job.

The Film Also Presented Several Strong Female Characters

The domestic worker tried to fight back Naina. A journalist, who is also one of the parents of kidnapped children, took to the Television to call out Naina’s terror tactics. Catherine herself chose to do her job while being heavily pregnant, keeping aside her appointment with the doctor.

Her character is written so that the audience might hate her for her defiance and hard-heartedness. But, as it turns out, she was right all along (without spoiling too much) instead of Javed Khan and others. Naina’s mother is another strong character who says that she won’t shed a tear for her daughter because her eyes have “dried up.”

Dimple Kapadia brightened the screen with the bit of screen time she had as PM Rajguru. One of my favourite moments is when the PM shuts down her sexist assistant, who says she becomes too “emotional” when it comes to such cases.

The modern era also sees “emotional” being thrown around as a cuss word to attack women with opinions or authority.

“Women are too emotional to lead a country.”

“Women can’t handle the pressure of handling a company.”

The tendency to show softness, sensitivity, and compassion is misrepresented as a woman’s weakness, therefore, her inability to handle pressure and difficult situations. PM Rajguru explains it the best – when it comes to severe pressure, emotions can be an asset instead of a liability.

The film passed the Bechdel Test with flying colours and provided multidimensional facets to all women on-screen. None of them is perfect. They have their experiences. They showed flaws. They also did the right thing when the time came.

Naina calls out the mentality that stigmatises those with anxiety and depression by calling them “crazy.” She presents the actuality of the citizens’ insensitivity because they have participated in a death poll she uploaded online. Naina counted on the media’s tendency to gain TRP for her deeds.

Naina clarifies towards the end, why would someone like her do such a thing. Why would a woman regarded as sweet and down-to-Earth suddenly commit a horrifying crime before the nation? Can her deeds be justified? Should 16 children’s parents have to suffer for her to make her point?

I guess, as the audience, it is up to us, in a way. The filmmakers wanted to leave that part open. Should Naina be forgiven? Is she a villain? Or a hero?

The Main Message Behind The Film

I don’t want to give away too much.

As per the premise, a girl was raped at 16 by the school bus driver and his accomplice. Her parents had run from pillar to post to get her justice. Her father succumbed to the grief and pressure of the heartbreaking incident. But, the police officers went after another high-profile case, sidelining the girl and her parents. So, what happens on that day results from a chain reaction kickstarted by that one crime.

The statement made by the survivor is simple, she wants the death penalty for rape. Because the police messed up the investigation, she believes that the only way such crimes can stop is by instilling fear in the minds of potential rapists and people who might help them in their acts.

Here’s the thing, two men committed the crime. So should only the perpetrators be prosecuted? Shouldn’t the police officers who disregarded the crime be held accountable after the high-profile case?

Shouldn’t the school be accountable for keeping the two men employed after the crime? Should they escape the penalty? Also, what guarantee is there that the death penalty will stop such crimes altogether? And, is it that easy to implement capital punishment?

There have long debates around capital punishment.

In India, the death penalty is awarded under major sections of Section 376 and the POCSO Act. Gangrapes, repeated offences, and crimes categorised under rarest of rare cases are awarded the death penalty.

Four adult men who raped and mutilated Nirbhaya were hanged to death. As citizens, we saw the cat-and-mouse game they played by using every loophole in the law to delay their sentence. The main perpetrator in Shakti Mills, who was awarded the death penalty for the repeated offence, got the sentence acquitted.

Two women responsible for killing several kids got their death sentences removed, even though the president rejected the mercy petition. Human rights activists denounced the death penalty, citing that it cannot be part of progressing, civilised society. However, countries around the world are debating laws that uphold capital punishment.

‘A Thursday’ shows the survivor getting what she wants. The problem is that the film misses a crucial point it addressed at its end. The Prime Minister described her as another victim of the system, not just the two men who violated her. So while the men who violate women might get their dues, what about the system?

While calling for capital punishment, the film doesn’t necessarily hold the system accountable. Shouldn’t the two police officers face accountability for not trying hard enough to capture the rapists? For delaying justice for over 15 years? Shouldn’t the courts be transparent enough to ensure that justice is not delayed?

The Delhi police were blamed for letting the crime happen on December 16th, 2012. There were similar instances and reports where survivors and their families were insulted, sidelined, and denied justice. Two years ago, a 22-year-old gang-rape survivor was arrested and sent to jail by a civil court in the Araria district of Bihar for causing “unrest.”

As per reports, Hathras wasn’t the only case where the police cremated a rape survivor’s body. The case in Kerala where an actress was assaulted in a moving vehicle saw justice being delayed for five years. One can only imagine what ordinary people go through.

‘A Thursday’ does indeed throw light on the issue with an overworked system with the wrong priorities. Where survivors and their families are asked to “behave,” “understand,” or “not be emotional.” But the light is immediately shifted to the law. Survivor doesn’t talk about the police who failed her. She wants the law.

The presence of such an imperfect police/judiciary system alone shows why it might be a bad idea to implement capital punishment for all rape cases because innocent people can get jailed, real perpetrators can get away. Survivors can be further silenced. ‘Aranyak’ shows an innocent boy being jailed and the actual perpetrator getting away. Imagine capital punishment happening.

Killing the rapist can serve as a wish-fulfilment, especially in a film. Justice is about harmony and accountability. ‘A Thursday’s entire focus should have been on this broken system that needs fixing. It can happen only through sensitivity, better resources, rehabilitation, and priorities.