The Reel Review
This 2017 film, one of India’s highest grossing movies ever, is the story of Insia, a talented 15-year-old singer who, with the help of her mother, defies her abusive father, donning a niqab and posting videos on YouTube to secretly pursue her dream of stardom… and freedom from her mean-spirited father. Writer/director Advait Chandan’s story, with its impactful portrait of domestic violence, isn’t the typical lighthearted Bollywood story, but heartfelt performances from Zaira Wasam (Dangal) and Meher Vij (Bajrangi Bhaijaan) as the mother-daughter duo, and a humorous comic turn from Aamir Khan – also an executive producer of the film – as the self-absorbed superstar who ends up helping Insia, elevates this touching ode to motherhood past some awkward production moments and predictable melodrama into a beautiful, crowd pleasing tearjerker. Well done.
On Netflix.
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