Bodhon review: Sandipta, Ditipriya, and a burning issue fail to save the series from gaping lacuna, lack of care

2.5/5

Story: Shinjini (Ditipriya Roy) gets raped by a group of young men – her friend’s friends – while returning from a party. Raka Sen (Sandipta Sen) – a smart and able economic professor of Shinjini’s college – gets a glimpse of her discomfort at a traffic light. Upon knowing the incident, the professor convinces Shinjini and her mother (Pushpita Mukherjee) to report the case. The perpetrators – who hail from influential families – The show gets into a courtroom drama when a public prosecutor (Chandreyee Ghosh) and defence attorney (Kaushik Chattopadhyay) build their cases.

Review: The good news is that sensitive issues, like the social and legal battle of a raped woman, the importance of a woman’s consent in getting intimate, and concerns about marital rape, are increasingly being reflected in our popular culture. With the reach of a film or a web series, such shows serve their purpose as a social cause and create awareness to some extent.

The bad news is, many such shows are often made without any finesse. Bodhon is one such example. It chooses a sensitive issue of rape, the post-rape socio-legal battle of the woman, the insensitivity across society, and so on. It also touches upon the post-traumatic stress disorder of the protagonist. But finally, it fails to present a wholesome drama because of its careless making.

First, there is no build-up for any of the characters except Sandipta’s. Even Sandipta’s character is one-dimensional – even stereotypical of being passionate and headstrong. The other characters are simply dull – a crass police officer and a professor who have little respect for women, a couple of sensitive colleagues, an entitled boyfriend, and an IAS in love. Shinjini’s mother shows some shades and conflicts initially but then falls flat.

Second, the show follows an overly simplified narration that makes it too easy to be true. The protagonist meets an IAS (Kaushik Roy) purely by chance and he turns out to be one of the main keys to justice. Sandipta’s love life also follows a very linear path – she finds emotional support exactly when she feels dejected by her boyfriends Som (Honey Bafna) – a character that doesn’t add any value to the show.

Third, the crisis never intensifies and gets sorted even before it hits the audience. For example, the fear of job loss for Raka Sen has zero credibility as it gets sorted, again through an oversimplified course of events, before it sinks in.

In terms of acting, Ditipriya excels in her portrayal of Shinjini. She portrays the characters trauma and fear effortlessly. Meanwhile, Sandipta is inconsistent. In one shot, she is fabulous, like when she breaks down in her car or when she simply looks at her discomfort with Shinjini and fails to take a quick call. And in some others, she falters, especially during her interaction with family members. Her dialogues are pretty shoddy too. Kaushik and Honey have very little to do due to their linear portrayal. Orpheus, on the other hand, is very convincing.  

The courtroom drama, despite generality, is pretty gripping. Chandreyee and Kaushik both are seasoned actors and their arguments look more convincing than the rest of the story. In case there is season two, it will be worth waiting for their verbal fight and backstories if any.

Verdict: It is not one of the best Hoichoi series for sure. It deals with a sensitive plot but shoddily. There is a possibility of a second season and if that is made well then it can be a complete watch together.