“Angrezi Medium” Review: Not As Rousing As Its Predecessor

Angrezi Medium is one of the most awaited films of 2020. It marks the return of National Award-winning actor Irrfan Khan on celluloid after a gap of two years. The actor was undergoing treatment for brain cancer in the UK. The movie was hugely anticipated also because it is a sequel to the 2017 satirical comedy Hindi Medium. So, does the sequel do justice to its predecessor? Does Irrfan manage to weave the same magic with his performance? Let’s find out.

Story: Set in Udaipur, Angrezi Medium revolves around a sweet-shop owner Champak Bansal (Irrfan Khan) and his daughter Tarika Bansal (Radhika Madan). Champak is a single father who has kept no stone unturned in raising his daughter after the untimely death of his wife. She means the world to him and all he wanted for her is nothing but best.

Tarika, who is a bright student, always wanted to study in a prestigious foreign university, but her father inadvertently jeopardizes her only chance to secure a scholarship from an esteemed university in London. Guilt-ridden Champak is now ready to go the extra mile and do everything possible to ensure that her daughter gets admission in the university of her choice. What happens next forms the crux of the story.

Critical Analysis: Angrezi Medium claims to be a standalone sequel to the 2017 film Hindi Medium. Unfortunately, it comes nowhere close to the gem that the Saket Chaudhary directorial was. The only strength of the sequel is its performances, especially from talents like Irrfan Khan and Deepak Dobriyal, who were also the backbone of the previous film in the franchise. The film has a paper-thin story with an unimaginative screenplay. Some dialogues are funny, but that is not enough to save a 145-minutes long film.

Having said that, Angrezi Medium does not bore you to death. It does have some moments to entertain you. The first half is thoroughly entertaining and breezes by smoothly. Irrfan and Radhika’s scenes together are genuinely funny, emotional and endearing. Director Homi Adajania very beautifully establishes the camaraderie between the two and that warms the cockles of your heart every time they are together. Radhika Madan has also performed best to her abilities. She manages to do extremely well in her scenes with Irrfan Khan.

The main problem lies with the second half of the film where there is an absolute lack of logic. Even a child can count various loopholes the makers have thrown in, in the second half. From being a father-daughter film, Angrezi Medium becomes something totally different. Kareena Kapoor Khan, who makes her entry in the second half, saves the film from loosing its steam, but by then the damage has already been done.

Final Verdict: You can watch Angrezi Medium for effortless performances from Irrfan Khan and Deepak Dobriyal and a few genuine laughs. Unlike its predecessor, the sequel fails to tug at your heartstrings. I am going with 2.5 stars.

Movie Credits

Banner: Maddock Films
Director: Homi Adajania
Casting: Irrfan Khan, Radhika Apte, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Deepak Dobriyal
Runtime: 145 Minutes
STARBIZ Rating: 2.5 Stars

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