Jaane Jaan review: Jaideep Ahlawat, Kareena Kapoor, Vijay Varma make the film worth your time

Filmmaker Sujoy Ghosh made Kahaani in 2012. Every film that he has made in the subsequent years has inadvertently been compared to that film. It set a benchmark for thrillers in Hindi cinema in the past decade. The story, which had Ghosh as the co-writer, remains one of the most thrilling tales of revenge ever told. With Kahaani, Ghosh himself set the benchmark very high. His latest, Jaane Jaan, which has Kareena Kapoor headlining the cast, falls under the same category of mystery thrillers, only here we know the killer from the beginning. 

Based on Keigo Higashino's novel The Devotion of Suspect X, Ghosh and co-writer- Raj Vasant take the story to Kalimpong in West Bengal. A musty, misty town where Maya (Kareena Kapoor) lives with her daughter Tara and runs a cafe in the town. She is a single mother and her life revolves around her daughter and her work. Naren (Jaideep Ahlawat) is her mysterious, awkward neighbour, who visits her cafe daily, only to catch a glimpse of Maya. One fine day an unwanted visitor, Ajay Mharatre (Saurabh Sachdeva) comes knocking at Maya's door. Turns out he is her husband. An argument ensues and it leads to Ajay's death. Naren comes to help Maya dispose of the body.

Days later cop Karan Anand (Vijay Varma) comes to visit the hilly town in search of Ajay Mhatre and Maya becomes his main suspect. Naren, a brilliant Math teacher, creates the perfect alibi for Maya and his daughter. But Karan is a sharp investigator so it isn't easy to fool him. Does Maya get arrested for her crime or does Naren save the day, forms the rest of the story. 

Higashino's 2005 novel has been adapted into other languages over the years and also formed the base for Jeethu Joseph's immensely successful Drishyam. Jaane Jaan is similar to Drishyam in that sense as it introduces the audience to the crime and murderer right at the beginning but then takes the viewer on a journey of how the story unfolds afterwards - with alibis in place and calculative mastermind laying the right trap for the cop. But unlike Drishyam which keeps you on the edge, Jaane Jaan slackens ever so often and sometimes even gives away a few of the key plot points smack in the middle of the film. 

The nearly 2 hour film meanders slightly in between, and I found myself getting a little impatient at some scenes thinking why aren't we getting to the main point? But while the story slackens, Ghosh uses his incredible cast to create just the right ambience. It's a stellar cast and merges commercial and art houses so well. Jaane Jaan has an uncanny trio taking the film forward. The very commercially successful Kareena Kapoor with OTT favourites Jaideep Ahlawat and Vijay Varma. All three are cast in strikingly different characters - stuff that they haven't played on screen before. Kareena shuns all the glamour and instead, sports worry lines and looks tired as Maya- a hardworking single mom wanting to give a good life to her daughter. Her past is told only in blurry flashbacks, almost in one sentence during an interrogation scene. She remains unattainable, to the viewer and Naren - mysterious, slightly cold yet desirable. It's a restrained performance for Kapoor who has over the years mastered this act in films like Talaash and Laal Singh Chadha. 

Vijay Varma plays the charmy, witty slightly cocky Karan Anand who doesn't get much of a back story but yet manages to make you smile. We are so used to seeing the man play the villain in the films and series, that it feels refreshing to see him play the sharp cop eager to solve the mystery of a missing man. His character is also lured by the mysterious Maya and even though he tries to fight his emotions, he finds himself getting drawn to the woman. 

The film though belongs to Jaideep Ahlawat, who plays the straight-faced awkward math genius Naren. Unsure, balding before time and deeply devoted to Maya, Naren makes you uncomfortable with his gazes yet provides the assurance that Maya needs in times of crisis. His is the most complex role and Ahlawat, known for his talent, does not disappoint. 

Ghosh, who is an ardent admirer of RD Burman's song, uses the composer's songs throughout the film that enhance the narrative and give out important details. It's a clever usage and one that is typical of Ghosh's films. 

I do wish Avik Mukhopadhyay's camera work had more lighting though. He does manage to create a sense of aura and danger lurking in every corner but some of the scenes are shot in terribly low light making things very unclear. Perhaps that was intentional for the narrative. Or not.

Jaane Jaan may not engage you completely and from start to finish but it is a performance-driven film. The climax is underwhelming slightly and makes you feel that you already had a sense of how it would unfold but nevertheless its principal cast- Kareena Kapoor, Jaideep Ahlawat and Vijay Varma- make the film worth your time. Jaane Jaan is streaming on Netflix.