Vidya Balan and Shefali Shah-starrer Jalsa had me hooked from the word go. There are so many factors working in its favour already. Firstly, it’s the coming together of these two stalwarts that makes the film all the more special, and on top of that, it also marks a reunion of Vidya with director Suresh Triveni after Tumhari Sulu. Considering the masterpiece that their earlier film was, my expectations were already over the roof with Jalsa, and it’s posters and teaser took that curiosity even higher. But the trailer of the film released today proves that it was just the beginning as I am totally immersed in its world after watching it.
Check out the trailer here:
The trailer begins on a morbid note that took me by shock as I witness an accident of a young girl being hit by a car. Vidya is shown as a high profile journalist who comes across this case and as it turns out the girl that was hit is the daughter of Vidya’s house help, played by Shefali. The whole story is about people trying to either uncover or hide the truth behind the accident, while keeping the other people oblivious of their moves and the journey keeps you on the edge of your seat.
Throughout the trailer, Vidya and Shefali prove why are they considered masters of their craft as more than their dialogues, it’s their eyes and body language that does the talking. As Shefali says, ‘To, thok dene ka usko,’ I couldn’t help but feel a chill down my spine. While Vidya does seem intimidating as a strong and successful figure, Shefali’s gaze is scary and it just pierced right through me. Vidhatri Bandi as the introverted employee of Vidya, who is trying to unravel the facts of the story, is just completely spot on. And while there is very little given about other characters, just the one look of Manav Kaul and Iqbal Khan was enough to create an intrigue within me.
Jalsa is jointly produced by Bhushan Kumar and Krishan Kumar from T Series along with Vikram Malhotra and Shikhaa Sharma from Abundantia Entertainment, and Suresh. It also features Rohini Hattangadi, Shrikant Mohan Yadav, Shafeen Patel and Surya Kasibhatla. It will start streaming on Amazon Prime Video from March 18, 2022.
With talents like Vidya and Shefali coming together for the first time, I was already certain that Jalsa was going to be exemplary. But the trailer has proved to me that my expectations were just a fraction of what the final product has actually turned out to be. I am eagerly waiting now to uncover this story and I am sure this one will stay with me for a long time after I am done watching it.