Film: Vanvaas 

Cast: Nana Patekar, Utkarsh Sharma, Simrat Kaur, Rajpal Yadav, Ashwini Kalsekar, etc. 

Director: Anil Sharma 

Rating: 2.5 Moons

'Vanvaas' takes us deep into the world of ingratitude, family, loneliness and pain. Anil Sharma leads his audience on an emotional journey where every scene and dialogue is full of extreme emotions. Although the film has some strong characters and impressive moments, there is a seriousness in its story and presentation that sometimes slows down its pace.

The story revolves around Nana Patekar's character Tyagi who is retired and old and has become irritable. He loved his dead wife Vimala so much that he wants their house to become a trust, but this is not the wish of his son. Due to this, his family takes Tyagi to Varanasi, where they abandon him and go away. Tyagi searches for his family in Varanasi, where he meets Utkarsh Sharma (Veeru). Veeru tells him the truth about his children and a deep friendship develops between the two.

Nana Patekar's character is courageous but nothing new. His grief and anger come out suddenly, but in the last part of the film this anger suddenly turns into peace, which seems a bit odd. Utkarsh Sharma's character is also fine, but sometimes seems ordinary, especially because his romance with Simrat Kaur does not match the core spirit of the film.

The direction is based on pure emotions, but its pace is slow and at times the supply of weapons and extras in the film remains complicated. Nana Patekar and Utkarsh Sharma have good chemistry, especially when they share their pain and struggle with each other, but the impact of the story is lost due to the additions of the rest of the cast.

Actors like Ashwini Kalsekar and Rajpal Yadav are credible in their roles, but even their contribution does not lift the film. The music, especially the sound of bhajans, was not needed as the film is already full of deep emotions of its own.

Overall, 'Vanvaas' impresses because of Nana Patekar and Utkarsh Sharma as well as some good scenes, but the pace and the additional cast make it a bit tiresome. If the film was sped up and some of the parallel stories were removed, it could have been a much better experience.