Shakuntala Devi
2020
Director: Anu Menon
Cast: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra, Jisshu Sengupta, Amit Sadh

What’s the plot?

Born in Bangalore in 1930, Shakuntala Devi was a child prodigy. From her early childhood, her exceptionally advanced mathematical skills- (despite hardly any formal education!) made her into a popular stage performer. Her entire childhood and early youth were spent doing Math trick shows and earning for her family. As a young lady, following estrangement with her family, and a rather violent break-up with her wealthy lover, Shakuntala Devi went to UK to try her luck as a math performer. A Spanish mathematician became her suitor-supporter during this phase, helping her to build a solid reputation in Western academic and social circles as a super-fast calculator of mind-boggling sums. Later she married an Indian civil servant and had a daughter. The marriage ended in a divorce and even, her relationship with her daughter soured over the years, leading to a bitter legal battle. Despite all the turmoil in her personal life, Shakuntala Devi remained in the limelight as a Math genius, besides dabbling in writing, astronomy, and even, politics.

Verdict

Director Anu Menon, who also co-wrote the screenplay along with Nayanika Mahtani, paints an interesting picture of a remarkable woman, whose freakishly fast math calculations made her a global celebrity, but whose fiercely independent, free-spirited yet image-conscious personality’s quirks not only alienated her from most people, but also often invited controversies.

The biopic works because of the colorful central character and her complex chemistry with her near-and-dear ones. There is a good mix of light-hearted fun moments with some pensive reflective ones. The story spanning eight decades gives scope for a wide range of looks and feels, and the film captures various period feels well.

Vidya Balan, once again underlines why she is one of the finest actresses. She perfectly gets into the skin of the character. Through her performance, we get to feel Shakuntala Devi’s outgoing, go-getter, center-stage-seeking personality; her anger against her money-minded father and her submissive mother;  hidden pain at losing her men; her futile struggle to be the best mother and her mercurial temperament.

Sanya Malhotra plays Shakuntala Devi’s daughter. Her resentment towards her globe-trotting celebrity mother and her conflicting emotions as a child growing up in a broken family are portrayed well by her; but her teenage act doesn’t go too well.

Luca Calvani, playing Shakuntala Devi’s Spanish boyfriend and Jissu Sengupta, playing her divorced but still very much in love husband, are two sensitive portrayals. Amit Sadh, as the daughter’s hubby, has pretty much nothing to do!

Besides her name- Shakuntala Devi, and her fame- as the Guinness Book record-holder ‘Human Computer’, not much was known about the lady. This Bollywood biopic aired on Amazon Prime is a fine primer on her feted but checkered life.

Rating
3 stars