I Want to Talk - Good performances weighed down by writing

 I want to Talk

Hindi - Drama

122 mins
Prime Video

Based on the scarcely believable true story of Arjun Sen - Directed by Shoojit Sircar , "I Want to Talk" (IWtT) is a story of the bond between a father and daughter against the backdrop of his extraordinary life circumstances.

Arjun Sen (Abhishek Bachchan) is a successful marketing executive, running a blockbuster campaign for a Pizza company. He is separated from his wife and shares custody of their daughter Reya (Pearl Dey (young), Ahilya Bumroo (adult)). One afternoon, during a presentation, Arjun coughs up blood and later wakes up in the hospital, where his life takes a dramatic turn with a cancer diagnosis.

Jolted out of his ideal life, the story follows Arjun’s journey from denial (he is given 100 days to live) to surviving 21 surgeries to remove cancerous cells from nearly all his internal organs. The movie explores how his relationship with Reya transforms during this tumultuous period.

IWtT is definitely not as humorous as  Sircar's own Piku. The film is slow and certainly meanders in the first half, before young Reya truly understands her father's condition.

I noticed a few continuity errors and writing gaps.

• Arjun's doctor Dr Deb (played delightfully by Jayant Kripalani), is shown to be quite aged. Yet despite a span of 8/10 years (judging by Reya’s growth), he shows no signs of aging.
• Quite frankly, no one seems to age.  Neither does Arjun's close buddy, nor does the Nurse who befriends him.
• Given the premise, Arjun too, does not seem to age significantly. His transformation seems inconsistent.
• While I appreciate the focus on his fortitude rather than physical suffering, the lack of detail about how he managed to afford years of treatment raises questions. 
• After his divorce, Arjun is left with just his Cadillac and loses his job post-diagnosis, yet his financial situation seems to improve later without much explanation. A glimpse into how he navigated this challenge would have added depth.
• Johnny Lever comes and goes and we do not really know him. A woefully underdone character.

Given that Shoojit Sircar and Ritesh Shah(writer) have delivered strong narratives in the past, it is surprising that the writing here feels so flimsy. They even had a book and Arjun Sen himself as references, which makes this missed opportunity all the more frustrating. Films with similar premises are often award-worthy due to their emotional resonance, but this one feels underdone.

That said, the performance are the saving grace. Abhishek Bachchan's work in the last  5/7 years (Dasvi, Ludo, Ghoomer, Breathe - into the shadows) -have really shown his ability to play  diverse characters. These have reintroduced him to the audience as a extremely good actor (Mani Ratnam agnostic!), someone to look to for meaningful roles, the occasional "Housefull" notwithstanding.  His portrayal of Arjun is commendable, capturing the character’s initially cocky, condescending and eventually persistent nature. His physical transformation is noteworthy, and his scenes with Dr. Deb stand out for their warmth and authenticity.

Ahilya Bamroo as the adult Reya is good and holds her own in scenes with Abhishek. The scene where they drive back and forth to her mother's home to pick up her shoes is nice!

In the end, it ends up becoming a watchable drama due to the performances by the actors, who rise beyond the flimsy writing and surprisingly daft continuity errors. Frustrating because the film had the potential to deliver a far more powerful emotional impact with stronger writing and better attention to detail.