A remake of the Spanish film Mirage, Do Baaraa is an exciting ride from the start to finish. Kinda like Back to the Future meets 13 B meets Stranger Things (vibe-wise)
Read Full Do Baaraa Movie Review:
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Pavail Gulati, Saswata Chatterjee
Rating: 3.5/5
Runtime: 2 hours 15 mins
Storyline:
Antara Awasthi (Taapsee) moves with her husband and daughter Avanti into a new home. The trio come to know that years ago a boy named Anay used to live in their house.
Anay, being the key witness to a murder in the neighbourhood, had died in a tragic accident while escaping from his pursuer (Saswata). A geo-magnetic storm had coincided with that horrific event.
In the present time, Antara notices a strange, old TV in the bedroom – playing an old recording. The huge geo-magnetic storm has again returned. Shockingly, Antara discovers that she is able to communicate through the TV ….with Anay from the past!
She warns him about his impending death, ultimately saving his life. However, in saving him, it drastically alters her present reality – one of the key events being that her daughter no longer exists now. The murderer from the original timeline is still lurking about and Anay, though alive, is nowhere to be found!
Interspersed with shady neighbours, dead bodies, extramarital affairs, geomagnetic storms and TVs functioning as portals…. Do Baaraa is an exciting, edge-of-the-seat thriller with a satisfying climax!
What Do We Think?
First of all…BOHOT MAZA AYA DEKH KE. I haven’t watched the original movie – Mirage, (I wanted to see Do Baraa with a fresh lens) but a quick glance at Wikipedia told me the plot is more or less the same.
The non-linear screenplay makes Do Baraa fun and requires you to follow the plot and parallel timelines closely.
Everything doesn’t appear apparent at first glance, but it’s not so complicated that you can’t keep up. The first half is thoroughly engaging but the interval comes at an odd point. The 2nd half has a satisfactory climax with all the ends tied neatly but it truly did have the potential to integrate some more tricky twists and layers.
The title ‘Do Baraa’ is clever indeed, because the timestamp of 2:12 plays a crucial role in the events that transpire. And thematically it makes sense because ‘Do Baraa’ in Hindi means ‘again or twice’… signifying the importance of 2nd chances and dual timelines!
My only gripe is that past vs present looks of Saswata Chatterjee and Himanshi Choudhry are barely distinguishable in the 2nd timeline, making things slightly confusing at times.
Taapsee Pannu’s acting is solid albeit too familiar with her other roles. (She was way more versatile in Game Over in comparison) But the role she plays and the plot in itself is very interesting.
Her Thappad co-star Pavail Gulati too gives a decent performance. Felt like they could’ve amped up the ‘creep’ factor for Saswata’s character. If you love all things time travel and portals you’ll have a blast watching Do Baraa!
Hit Or Miss:
Definitely worth watching in theatres, especially if you’re a sci-fi geek! Watch for the stellar plot!
(Also Read: Taapsee Pannu Movies That Are REMAKES Of Spanish Films!)