Nothing compares to motherly love and the suffering of a mother who has had her children taken away against her will under the guise of bad parenting. The official list of allegations against her includes things like sharing a bed, feeding her kids by hand, and donning kajal to fend against evil eye. Despite being labeled as insane, unstable, and unsuitable to be a mother, she will battle valiantly to win custody of her kids back. With Mrs. Chatterjee v. Norway, we experience this torture. Adapted from Sagarika Chakraborty’s memoirs and based on a genuine story The painful tale of a couple whose two children were taken from them by the Norwegian childcare system in 2011 is told in the movie The Journey of a Mother. This Ashima Chibber-directed film, which stars Rani Mukerji in the title character as the broken and powerless mother who rebels against the system, is intensely moving despite its unbalanced premise and questionable execution.
The narrative opens with Debika Chatterjee (Rani Mukerji), who, along with her husband Anirudh Chatterjee, emigrated to Norway 12 years ago (Anirban Bhattacharya). They have a son named Shubh and a daughter named Suchi. Members of the Welfred child welfare department have been coming to their home for inspections and to make sure the kids are getting the proper care for the past four months, and then one day the kids is taken away and thrown in jail. The foster parents retain possession of it. All of Debika’s attempts, including shouting, fighting, and stealing her own kids from a government facility, have been ineffective. He learns about the scam the authorities are doing under the guise of child welfare during this struggle and makes an effort to expose the entire foster parenting operation. Does she, however, get her kids back? Does she lose more in this conflict than she gains?
The plot, which was co-written by Chhibber, Sameer Satija, and Rahul Handa, has the proper heart and aim in many areas, but the execution prevents it from connecting emotionally in others. Moments that are emotionally intense don’t endure long and lose their impact before you have time to absorb them. Mrs. Chatterjee vs. Norway only holds its own until the half because the first half is incoherent. The film is well-edited and stays on topic for its whole 135 minute runtime.Many tracks have been presented to us throughout Debika’s legal battle, although most of them have not yet been closed. What transpires, for instance, after a divorce? Why don’t Debika’s in-laws support her? What was the domestic violence case’s history? Why didn’t Indian law act sooner than it should have?
The movie’s characters are very one-dimensional, leading you to root for the good folks and despise the bad guys. You eventually come to the realization that it is much, much more than just Mrs. Charrjee v. Norway. Mrs. Chatterjee is up against misogyny and ingrained patriarchy, as well as her in-laws, husband, and the mother of the other children at the school. Yet his tenacious pursuit of this legal conflict makes you cry.
Rani Mukerji exhibits a wide range of feelings, and her portrayal of agony and pain makes you feel a knot in your throat. She varies between being well in control of her behavior and going entirely overboard in expressing her agony. There, I sensed, needed to be a balance. Although it is true that it can be tough to maintain control over your behavior when battling for something as delicate as child custody, it must have been even harder to witness her suffering on film because the dialogue at the end is so loud.She is a very smart housewife from a middle-class Bengali family, but occasionally her accent and Bengali lines hurt people’s feelings. Anirban Bhattacharya portrays her husband with a rough performance that emphasizes his distaste for her persona. Though he never completely dominates Rani, he is able to have some influence. It’s interesting how the appearances of the characters with little screen time vary greatly. Jim Sarbh plays Daniel Chupek Singh, an Indian-born attorney working in Norway, who plays a crucial role and has several memorable remarks. return to India Balaji Gauri, who plays Debika’s lawyer in Kolkata, is excellent, so it’s a shame that she enters the narrative so late. Although not at the expense of coming across as frivolous, she makes compelling points and even adds some humorous relief to the movie’s generally serious tone. In fact, his conversation with Jim Sarbh continues to be the highlight of the movie, as both actors give laugh-out-loud-loud lines that elicit applause from the crowd. The smallest cameo to date by Nina Gupta is effective and significant since it gives Debika’s struggle a new direction.
Although Mrs. Chatterjee Vs. Norway is a heartbreaking story about a mother, you hope the director would delve farther and spend more time with the main character. I was nonetheless taken aback that a narrative as compelling and endearing took more than ten years to be adapted into a movie. Keep a box of tissues nearby and watch it for Rani’s electrifying performance because there are many heartfelt moments.
film: Smt. Chatterjee v. Norway
mould: Rani Mukerji, Anirban Bhattacharya, Jim Sarbh, Balaji Gauri, Neena Gupta
Director: Ashima Chibber