The Vaccine War ( 2023 /Medical Thriller/ Crime Release)
Director- Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri
Cast – Nana Patekar, Pallavi Joshi , Raima Sen, Anupam Kher , Girija Oak, Nivedita Bhattacharya
Covid times will always be embedded as few of our darkest memories.
If we remember the fear , helplessness, prayers and the pain around, we also remember the desperate wait for the vaccines , the thankfulness of their availability and the assurance of being vaccinated.
The fact that we were able to develop and produce our Indigenous vaccine was a major factor behind the success of our country’s vaccination drive on such a mammoth scale.
And that is reason enough for you to go and watch the back story of how our scientists toiled hard to race against time ,fight against hurdles and achieve the unprecedented.
The film is based on the book by Dr. Balaram Bhargav, the then Director General , ICMR, who had spear headed the research and hence we believe the base story comes from the horse’s mouth.
We get a peep into their scientific journey. This part is full of scientific terminology. That might hinder its outreach to certain sections but also lends it an authentic feel and engrossing quality.
What also adds to the story is the stoic personality of Dr.Bhargav and his equation with his team.
The workplace pressures ,break downs, resentment and disagreements add realism. You could almost feel their fatigue, bewilderment and stress.The story shows that our heroes are humans who exhibited extreme resilience, perseverance and courage.
And that’s where the performances of the actors plays a huge role.
Nana Patekar wears the steadfast and straight faced character with ease, that being his trademark performance style.
Pallavi Joshi as Dr.Abraham shines. Her performance ensures that her character makes a strong connect with the audience. Her frustrations were so palpable.
Girija Oak is wonderful as the calm and subservient team member who doesn’t resent but understand and respects her boss’s tough demenour.
Nivedita Bhattacharya is good .
Together these actors bring alive the scientists and lends a human vulnerability to these heroes.
Raima Sen plays a baddie journalist to the hilt .
That unfortunately is the weakest part of the film The script lends her an over the top vampish tone that looks borderline caricature-ish at times.A little subtlety would have work better.
We understand that she represents a certain section of the media who had nefarious intentions and that cannot be denied.
But ,in a zest to paint that section black, they end up generalising the entire media. A balanced perspective might have helped.
Also at times, the film tries too hard to rev up emotions. For example the ghostly ‘laboured breathing’ score with the close up of the virus Or a melodramatic scene at one of the scientist’s home, wasn’t required. Mellower scenes that were grim reminders of the dark times were enough to move us.
The film might have flaws but it is an important film and an engrossing one at that.
There are ascpects to the success story that are fascinating ,some are eye opening and most of them are worth admiring.
The story of the vaccine is the story of the scientists and the story of India and a very major achievement. No need to diss it just because we do not like a govt or a film maker.
Let’s overlook these things and celebrate what needs to be applauded.
Score 3 on 5
BHAVNA TALKIES 