Summary
It is an important true story that could have been executed in a more engaging way.
Mission Majnu is based on a true story about an Indian agent who marries a Pakistani woman. He tries his best to stay out of the watchful eye of the government or police and finds peace in sewing. The film explores history repeating itself because the same cycle of events continues to happen. It’s hard to break the process if you’re born into a broken system.
This is the untold story of India’s most audacious and daring covert operation in the heart of Pakistan. The film does highlight the events that have led up to the moment between both countries.
Director Shantanu Bagchi makes some choices to set up the story as he breaks it into pieces. First the historical element of nuclear warfare, then the love story between an Indian man and a Pakistani woman, and lastly, the double life these agents lead.
It is set to have an emotional tie because of the relationship and the fact they are from two different backgrounds. So Bagchi also poses the question if love can conquer all in the face of adversity.
For the most part, Mission Majnu is engaging, but it does lose its steam towards the middle. The setup at the beginning of the opposing countries and what they’ve been fighting for was compelling.
Then as we meet the love interests, it becomes wholesome and sweet. The family dynamic is the most interesting aspect at first because her father doesn’t want her to marry the tailor. She doesn’t care about his occupation so she does marry him in spite of what her father said.
Once she gets pregnant, he has flashbacks to his own father and wonders if the same fate is waiting for him because he is an undercover agent himself. Unfortunately, the performances weren’t that strong to carry the film or to even make the second half of this film as engaging as it should have been.
It’s a true story that felt a bit empty because the love shared between the two of them wasn’t believable. The writing was also a bit generic and went through the motions for a historical story. It is a story that did need to be told but could have been executed in a better way.
Why is Mission Majnu based on a real true story?
The film is based on a true story of an important covert spy mission that took place in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. The mission was known as an untold story, despite the importance of the nature of the operation, that was said to have changed political relationships afterward.
The film was written by Parveez Shaikh. Aseem Arrora and Sumit Batheja all three writers have a lot of experience writing for both film and TV, so it would appear that the three writers involved may have been brought on to work extensively on the script. For three writers of this caliber to all work on the same project may insinuate that the script was reworked, and this may be part of the reason for the many delays that the film experienced.
However, with many other properties, such as Maidaan, and Doctor G, also missing their deadlines, it is most likely that the delays started with the Covid pandemic. Another major factor was the release of Jurassic World Dominion.
This blockbuster was to be released in June 2022, and this clashed with Mission Majnu, which had already been rescheduled for the same date. In an effort to avert a clash for the two films, it was decided that Mission Majnu would be held back, resulting in its eventual release in January 2023.
Read More: Where was the movie Mission Majnu filmed?
