A real Thappad that hits you hard

In mainstream movies, Thappad (Slap) is a tried and tested 'therapy' to correct the 'wrongdoings' of a person. Generally, it is the female lead who is slapped by the male protagonist. Before the film ends, the heroic action is justified to win applause from the audience. Amid this, Thappad is a welcome change, coming with the right questions.
This is an intelligently written film. Taapsee’s main character Amritha, from being a perfect housewife takes a grumpy road after realizing what she had gone through in marriage. A ‘slapping incident’ is her realization point on what she was surrendering – respect, career, freedom to name a few.
We are delicate about woman issues. Often, our social system keeps telling the women to ‘adjust’ their lives before tying the knot. When she is not ok with something, we try to protect her rather than addressing the problem. The result is that the problem remains there, and she faces an inner battle often left to herself. The film gives a tight slap to some unthinkable and unmeaningful notions prevalent in society.   

• Slapping your dear ones is an expression of love: The most ridiculous argument in recent times. You have no right to slap anyone. People may shrug off saying ‘after all it’s only a slap’ but the relative pain a woman undergoes in this whole act should not go unnoticed. 
• Sacrifice your interests for a new family: This is a piece of common parental advice before any wedding. Why should it always be a woman’s duty to give up their dreams and choices in a marriage? Why it never goes the other way around? Why should a person give up their individuality and live according to her husband’s wishes?
• It’s pitiful to remain unmarried: What more pitiful is to stay with a person who lacks empathy and understanding. It is okay to live life on our own terms that surrendering yourself completely.
• A woman can't do certain tasks: Seriously? The husband advises his partner to start learning to make parathas when she expresses her desire to learn driving. Why it always happens with women? Another character in the film has no shame in crediting the success of his hardworking lawyer wife to his family background and his privilege.
• Men will not understand women: Notwithstanding the support Amritha's husband receives from other counterparts, one of the striking parts from the film is Amritha’s father. A respectable man, he understands women and not the ‘advice-giving type’ we see in films. The conversation where Taapsee asks her father whether she is right is an underplayed yet powerful scene. When life gives you a chance, be like Amritha’s dad, not her husband.

Final thoughts
When Thappad hit the theatres in February, the Hindi film industry already witnessed two major releases with two leading woman actors - Kangana Ranaut in Panga and Deepika Padukone in Chhapaak in a space of one month. It was a heartening change to see from India's biggest film industry.  Thappad is one such film which ticks all the right boxes and a fine example to reinstate a proven fact - A film need not be preachy to deliver effective messages.

Movie: Thappad
Language: Hindi
Director: Anubhav Sinha
Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Ratna Pathak Shah, Pavail Gulati, Tanvi Azmi, Dia Mirza
Streaming on: Amazon Prime