Godavari

Godavari (2022) : Movie Review -

Nikhil Mahajan's arthouse cinema, Godavari, with Jitendra Joshi in the lead, has remained a subject of talk since the pandemic. The film was delayed for theatrical release, but the film festival screenings kept the flow going. Godavari isn't quite what the title and trailer imply. There are multiple dimensions to this artistic film, which has so many human emotions and spiritual theories flowing in different directions. The core is about spiritual penance, followed by self-realization, but it comes with the reference to the river "Godavari.". That's what's special about it; otherwise, it's a fine human drama with a slow burn and subtle life lessons.

Godavari is about Nishikant (Jitendra Joshi), a frustrated and unstable man who has no peace in life. He fights with everyone around him, including his family members. He also lives separately, leaving his wife, Gautami (Gauri Nalawade), daughter, mother, Bhagirathi (Neena Kulkarni), father, Neelkanth (Sanjay Mone), and grandfather, Gaurishankar (Vikram Gokhale). He even has cross conversations with his dear friend, Kasav (Priyadarshan Jadhav), and blames the river Godavari for everything. What follows is his self-realization about his greed, selfishness, and reasons to live. Godavari cleans the garbage that's in his mind.

Written by Prajakt Deshmukh and Nikhil Mahajan, Godavari is a sensible script. Actually, this is far too sensible and complex. The screenplay in the first half leaves you clueless about the motive and the characters. You can't make heads or tails about Nishikant's excessive behaviour. He is frustrated as hell, and you feel like leaving him there and getting out of the Audi. However, the second half comes as a penance. The definitions of tradition, spiritual freedom, existence, and immortality are well explained there. It is the last 30 minutes that drive the entire narrative in the right direction. By the end, you have something to keep in your head and mind, but only if you are mature enough to understand it.

Jitendra Joshi delivers one of the finest acts of his career. His previous two best performances in the leading roles came a decade ago, in 2012 with "Kutumb" and "Tukaram", and now with Godavari, he equals them again. The character of Nishikant was very complex, to be honest, but Jitu has made it look easy with his expressions. The way he delivers those dialogues and how annoyingly, is definitely commendable. Sanjay Mone stays quiet throughout the film but breaks the silence in the last 10 minutes to deliver one of the finest dialogues in the film. Gauri Nalawade and Neena Kulkarni are too good, while Priyadarshan misfires in a couple of scenes but recovers well quickly. Vikram Gokhale's cameo is fantastic, and the veteran actor just can't go wrong.

Godavari has a smooth flow in the technical departments. Even smoother than the actual flow of the river. Shamin Kulkarni's cinematography and Hrishikesh Petwe's editing make this a cinematic treat for art cinema lovers. Additionally, the background score creates its own magic. What Godavari lacks is simplicity to connect with normal moviegoers and stability in the intricate theories. That intermission block was so nice, so subtle, but where did that man suddenly disappear? Again, the cemetery scene, when Nishikant hugs the other man, and they both cry their hearts out. But why did Nishi go there in the first place? Director Nikhil Mahajan could have looked at these things and improvised them, but the sand has been dropped from the hands now. Nevertheless, Nikhil's vision to look at some things that are still untouched in Marathi cinema (except for filmmakers like Sunil Sukathnakar, Sumitra Bhave, Nagraj Manjule, and Gajendra Ahire) deserves to be hailed. This kind of cinema will soon vanish if we don't support it now, when OTTs and content cinemas are at their peaks. So let's drop our coins in this Godavari and make a wish that we get more and more movies like this.

RATING - 6/10*