The ‘Patna Shuklla’ film delves into the corruption in the educational sector in India. The story of this Hindi movie is set in Patna, Bihar state, where educational malpractices exist in the fictional Vihar University.
The protagonist is Tanvi Shukla (Raveena Tandon), a lawyer who leads the legal battle against the University. Also, it is one of the final movies of the Late Satish Kaushik, a well-known actor and director from India.
Please note that the name of the movie is 'Patna Shuklla" and not "Patna Shukla', most likly the extra 'L' signifies the 'Lawyer'. In India, usually the Shukla title is spelled with one 'L' only.
‘Patna Shuklla’ Movie Focuses on Education Scams in Vihar (aka Modern Bihar State?)
Trailer: Patna Shuklla (2024) Movie
Synopsis: Patna Shuklla (2024) Movie
When a helpless student has nowhere to turn to except a housewife who is also a small-time lawyer Tanvi Shukla (Raveena Tandon), what they uncover is a quagmire of an educational scam. Thus, a lawyer in Patna’s lower court, Tanvi Shukla is living her childhood dream of becoming a lawyer.
Spoiler Free Review: Patna Shuklla (2024) Movie
The basic storyline/plotline
A young student Rinki Kumari (Anushka Kaushik) approaches a lawyer Tanvi Shukla (Raveena Tandon) to file a legal case on her behalf to expose the corruption in the university. So, the stubborn lady lawyer Tanvi Shukla decides to get justice for her poor client Rinki despite facing all sorts of challenges in her personal life. While searching for truth, Tanvi finds out the sordid facts about the said education scam at the Vihar University of Patna, Bihar. Furthermore, Tanvi learns that the manipulation of students’ mark sheets has been happening for a long time. The big question is whether Tanvi will be able to expose the educational scam in the courtroom.
What did we not like about this movie?
Of late, we have seen some good-quality legal drama from India. Allow us to share a couple of examples of the same, the first one is the ‘Jai Bhim‘ Tamil film and the second one is the ‘Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai‘ Hindi film. Both of these movies from India are inspired by real-life incidents, which have taken place in recent years in India. But what set these two films apart is the fact that their courtroom scenes were captivating to watch.
Whereas, in the ‘Patna Shuklla’ film, the legal arguments in the judicial drama shot inside the courtroom are pedestrian, to say the least. Even the legal debate and the verbal exchange are too simplistic and predictable.
What did we like about this movie?
This film marks the return of charming Raveena Tandon on the big screen. We liked her acting, as she carries the weight of this legal drama on her shoulders. Besides, it is worth pointing out that the film was released after the death of two talented actors Satish Kaushik and Rio Kapadia of the Indian movie industry. So, we got a chance to watch these two wonderful actors on the movie screen and they were good as usual. We think it was an emotional moment for many Hindi movie lovers, as we watched them in this film.
The entire ensemble cast consisting of Raveena Tandon (Tanvi Shukla), Manav Vij (Siddharth Shukla), Satish Kaushik (Arun Kumar Jha), Chandan Roy Sanyal (Neelkanth Mishra), Anushka Kaushik (Rinki Kumari), Rio Kapadia (VC Sinha), Raju Kher (J P Sharma), Jatin Goswami (Raghubir Singh), etc. have performed well. It is heartening to note that almost all of them got the ‘Bihari’ dialect accent right. This is another thing that we liked about it.
The conclusion
There are quite a few flaws in its storyline/plotline, but we do not wish to be overly critical. Given the fact that not many Indian movies talk about the scams in the educational sector in India, this film tries to address it. Our only wish is that its writers could have tightened its script. And based its story on the harsh (caste) ground realities of Bihar, instead of misrepresenting the facts of existence. For the veteran actors that the Hindi movie industry lost in recent times, this two-hour-long movie is worth a watch, at least once.
Rating: Patna Shuklla (2024) Movie
| FM Rating | 3.00/5 |
| FM Short Comments | Its writers have incorporated the key issue of corruption in the education sector as the central theme. But this Hindi movie also focuses on the misuse of political power, for instance, the use of suspension from a job to punish the official or the use of a bulldozer to demolish a house. Still, given the social structure in India, its story does not seem real. Despite, its shortcomings, it is a brave film that raises quite a few important social/political issues. |
Poster: Patna Shuklla (2024) Movie
Key Details: Patna Shuklla (2024) Movie
| Genre | Drama, Legal, |
| Original language | Hindi (Bihari dialect) from India |
| Released | March 29, 2024 |
| Duration | 2 hours 5 minutes |
| Writers | Sameer Arora & Vivek Budakoti |
| Directors | Vivek Budakoti & Rajendra Tiwari |
| Cast | Raveena Tandon (Tanvi Shukla), Manav Vij (Siddharth Shukla), Satish Kaushik (Arun Kumar Jha), Chandan Roy Sanyal (Neelkanth Mishra), Anushka Kaushik (Rinki Kumari), Rio Kapadia (VC Sinha), Raju Kher (J P Sharma), Jatin Goswami (Raghubir Singh), Sushmita Mukherjee (Mrs Lata Jha), Dayashankar Pandey (Surendra Mohan), etc. |
| Producer | Zeal Z Entertainment services |
| Distributor | Disney+ Hotstar |
‘Dil Kya Irada Tera’ – loved this soft number
Poster & Featured Image of the Patna Shuklla (2024) Movie are courtesy of Disney+ Hotstar.