Mrs. movie review: Sanya Malhotra is terrific in a scathingly powerful attack on patriarchy

Mrs. movie review

Mrs. – it’s extremely difficult to stay true and respectful to an extraordinary cult on patriarchy like ‘The Great Indian Kitchen’ – the most powerful movie in recent times. Director Aarti Kadav along with her writers Anu Singh Choudhary and Harman Baweja (also the producer) do some simplification and omit the religious chapter from the original obviously to avoid backlash but stick to the exploitation and slavery of women in Indian households.

The women represented by Richa (Sanya Malhotra) in this film presents the picture of majority of Indian households that crosses state, linguistic and class boundaries. Richa wakes up early and is the last one to go to sleep. In between she does all the chopping grinding, sweeping, moping, cleaning of sewage (the kitchen pipe leakage for days does not bother her husband), garbage and many times is forced to surrender to her husband’s physical demands on bed. The routine is sickening as she gets no domestic help and no life of her own, no time for herself. Richa wants to resume her dance classes but her demand gets politely rejected by her father – in – law who is an expert on how dumpukth biryani should be cooked on tender flame but leaves half chewed meat bones on the table, same goes for his son Diwakar. Women who will eat on the same table after the men are done are not even given a clean table to eat.

Menstruation is the only time women like Richa get rest but it’s not care but the rigid old custom scare which says that women during menstruation are not ‘pure’. During that time a domestic help cooks for the men in the house. Men have no option to eat whatever she has cooked or order from outside.

The biggest USP of The Great Indian Kitchen is its astonishing ability to highlight hard scathing reality without doing anything extra. Just showing the routine household work in majority of Indian houses and the way millions of people eat and leave the waste on the dining table.

Mrs. Performance

Sanya Malhotra excels as Richa, playing the ordinary Indian housewife the actress gives an extraordinary performance that brings the pain, suffering, dilemma, helplessness and horror on screen to great effect. Millions of women audiences will relate with Richa and Sanya is expected to increase her fanbase after Mrs.

Nishant Dahiya as the typical male chauvinist husband is fantastic and plays his part with subtlety.

Kanwaljit Singh as Papaji – the father – in- law is outstanding. The actor as the soft-spoken male patriarch dominates the household with his aura and body language.

Varun Badola in a short role is excellent.

Mrs. - Flaws

As said earlier, for those who have watched the original Malayalam film ‘The Great Indian Kitchen’ they will point out the playing safe nature of the Hindi remake where makers have omitted the religious angle.   

Mrs. review final words

Mrs. – the Hindi remake of perhaps the most powerful Indian film in recent times – The Great Indian Kitchen (2021) by Jeo Baby that starred Nimisha Sajayan, not only gives Sanya Malhotra her best film till date but also highlights the disturbing truth of majority of Indian households that keeps on asking pertinent questions like – Is Kitchen a prison for housewife’s, Is Kitchen a place where millions of ‘Mrs’. are victims of domestic slavery?

Going with a well-earned four stars for Mrs.

Produced by Jio Studios in association with Baweja Studios, Mrs. is a ZEE5 original movie and will premiere on Zee5 on 07 Feb, 2025.