A strong message is subtly delivered under the cover of comedy by this social-satire, Kathal. It is a very light-hearted watch that will make you smile and also make its point without being preachy.

Sikhya Entertainment has become a household name since the documentary short it produced, ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ won the Oscars a couple of months ago. It has always been on the quest of off-beat and novel concepts and have backed many projects to cater to it niche audience that appreciates the art of storytelling and cinema. It has collaborated with Sanya Malhotra for the second time post Pagglait, another very off-beat film that released on Netflix.

With ‘Kathal’, the idea remains the same, to tell more than just a story. To make an impact and do that in a very subtle way. And fortunately, the makers are successful at their attempt in doing so. Kathal revolves around the life of a lady police inspector of a village in the state UP and how her life changes when a politician deploys all of the police force in investigating the lost Jackfruit from his house.

The makers have very easily captured the social elements of the society and the little nuances that go about in every tier-3 city or small towns of India especially the state of UP in terms of the casteism, discrimination, dowry and other illegal practices. Set in a fictional town of Moba, in Uttar Pradesh, the makers very well set the atmosphere. The writing in terms of the screenplay and dialogues is very smooth and raw. The director, Yashowardhan Mishra has grasp on his script and executes the story that he wants to tell very clearly.

The best part about Kathal is how it balances sensitive topics of gender discrimination, casteism, and also navigates around the nuances of a politics and criminal practices of a small-town all at the same time while also being able to keep the script very light and fun. A very big role in achieving this apart from the makers is of the ensemble.

Sanya Malhotra brings in authenticity and flavour to the movie with a very crafty portrayal of her character Mahima. The others in the ensemble add commendable support and a lot of humour is brought in by the master of comedy Rajpal Yadav as well as Vijay Raaz.

The BGM is great with the soundtrack having a couple of songs that though don’t fit perfectly well with the tone but were great to hear independently. The other technical aspects including the cinematography, editing and production design are above-average.

Kathal is a slow-burn satire that both entertains and delivers a message. Its treatment will make it cater only to a niche which is why it found home on Netflix. If you are looking to watch a light-hearted drama that is also something more than just a movie, go for it!

You can watch the trailer here: