Dr. Mala Chakravorty

Jijy Philips makes an impressive debut with this remake of the Telugu hit, Madhyanam Hatya. He has juxtaposed a dark domestic drama with a crime thriller and come up with an innovative and captivating movie. The first forty-five minutes move at a taut pace. There are a number of tension filled scenes that hold the audience spellbound. Ravi desperately trying to clean the blood on the bedroom floor as the maid washes pots and pans in the kitchen starts the frenetic pace of the man on the run. Ravi and his friendly neighbor dragging the TV carton in which the body is hidden, his desperate drive through town, Tejpal’s sudden appearances, Ravi’s lies which we all know will be uncovered in no time, add to the tension. Philips has done an excellent job of getting inside the mind of the hunted and showing us how circumstances can turn the most ordinary human being into a criminal. Unfortunately things turn somewhat sluggish and predictable in the second half and the film fails to sustain the interest of the viewer, though the climax is well done. 

No matter how worthy the premise is, this kind of film can only work if the performances are credible. Phuilips has put together a good cast. Actor-Producer Anil Kapoor gets into the skin of the character and adds another excellent performance to his large repertoire of strong performances. He lends credibility to a character on the verge of emotional disintegration in a cold, loveless world. With very little dialogue, the actor conveys the inner turmoil of Ravi, his anguish, fear, despair, depression, anxiety with restraint and precision. To digress a bit, Mr. Kapoor is a good actor and may be trying to prove his versatility, but it is painful to see him gyrating with Bipasha Basu in the trite comedy about cheating husbands, No-Entry, released simultaneously. 

Of the supporting cast, Boman Irani, playing the sardonic, eccentric cop and harangued husband, who alternates between empathy and fury as a strategy to befriend and intimidate suspects, gives another stylish performance. His appearances liven up the movie which tends to drag at times. Suchitra Krishnamoorthy Kapoor, back on the screen after a long time, is good as the nagging middle-class house wife. Her screen time is brief, but very effective, even as a corpse. Nandana Sen, within her limited scope, gives an even performance, but needs to work on her Hindi diction. Rajesh Tandon as her boyfriend is adequate and Abhijit Lahiri as Sheela’s grieving father, does a good job. The child artists are natural as the emotional core of this film. They are the real victims of this tragedy: victims of a failed marriage and circumstances, having to cope with their familiar world replaced by a frightening and faceless future. 

I feel that the film would have been far more effective if the plot was tighter and the length reduced. To me, the most interesting aspect of the film was the premise set forth in the first fifteen minutes – the foray into the grey areas of marital relationships that have soured. We are repeatedly told, ‘every marriage has problems’, ‘husbands and wives always fight’. In this case, it is a bit more than the normal day-to-day conflicts that are an inevitable part of two people with different ideas sharing their life. We see Ravi as a beleaguered, frazzled man, and Sheela as a shrewish, domineering woman, but we don’t know what has led to this state of affairs. The perspective is solely Ravi’s. At one point we have Sheela’s mother admitting that her daughter was ill-tempered. Sheela is portrayed extremely negatively as a harridan of a woman, constantly scolding her children, harassing the maid, accusing her innocent husband of disinterest in her and absorption with his pretty assistant. 

But is Ravi really innocent? We don’t see him doing anything to allay his wife’s insecurities. Prior to Sheela’s death, we don’t find him spending time with her or the children. All we see is him coming home late every night. His scruffy appearance, monosyllabic responses, aloof body language, all reflect weariness with his wife, home, life. As an interesting parallel we are also shown glimpses into Tejpal’s marriage. Here, the surly wife is equally shrewish and constantly reminds Tejpal that he is a loser and it was her father’s connections that have given him his professional status. Tejpal too maintains a front in public and any questions about his wife are answered with, ‘she’s fine, everything’s fine’. Tejpal’s unhappy married life gives an ironic twist to the narrative and to Tejpal’s attitude to Ravi. Ravi tells Reena that his marriage has not worked and if it were not for the children he would have divorced Sheela. In the meanwhile, he endures her complaints and accusations silently, struggling to control his inner fury and maintain his public image.

Is this the director’s bleak take on marriage? Once romance fades and doesn’t evolve into friendship or companionship, is all that’s left -- compromise for the sake of children? Pushing the envelop a little further, is this the natural outcome of such marriages -- indifference and disinterest leading to suspicion and accusation that can lead to deception, abuse, perhaps even murder? The original Telugu film from which My Wife’s Murder has been adapted had the tagline Ever Wished Your Wife Was Dead? That tagline undoubtedly comes from a patriarchal perspective on domineering women and harassed men, but if the genders are reversible, I see that as a telling commentary on marriage. Perhaps there are tangible moments of claustrophobia in every marriage, when all you want is to be free of your spouse! For Ravi, this is a fantasy that actually becomes a reality and turns into a nightmare from which there is no waking up! To me the movie had a dream-like quality about it. I had a feeling that what was happening on screen was Ravi’s nightmare and at any point of time he would wake up with a fresh perspective -- that to be appreciated, respected and trusted by your spouse you need to appreciate her/him and communicate with her/him as well – and maybe Ravi and Sheela would work out their problems after all! Sadly, that didn’t happen – probably because life does not provide solutions as simplistic as that.
Summing up, My Wife’s Murder is a good film that combines a gripping plot with a thought provoking theme. Philips, his cast and his crew have pulled together to give us an unusual psychological thriller with an effectively eerie background score, tight script, authentic settings, good acting and first-rate cinematography. Unfortunately, despite names like Ram Gopal Varma and Anil Kapoor, this relatively small film may go unnoticed in the midst of flashier movies like Mangal Pandey, Salaam Namaste and No Entry, but it should not be missed by those looking for a something different.