Imagine a scenario of the Indian cricket team chasing a tricky target of 200 runs in 50 overs, and those who have seen Dravid and Sehwag’s batting styles know how both would approach the game – eventually both are match winners but the style and attitude make them distinct. Wonder why I am talking about a cricket match in a movie review, read on till the end to find out why.

I might have been in my teens when the Godhra horror happened, and maybe I do not have a very clear picture of what happened (Though I have a vague memory of the overview of what happened and why) so I was genuinely interested to see what’s been told in the movie, The Sabarmati Report.

I will start from the end – the lead actor makes a statement – can anyone tell at least 3 names of those who died in the attack and burning of the train? To be honest, unfortunately, I would say 99% of our people won’t know the names, that’s the tone of the movie – how the biased and sold-out media at that time suppressed the truth of the horror, the film shows how media confused and kept the public ignorant of the truth by creating 2 false narratives blaming the passengers.

It is not clear who the film portrayed as the media mogul – maybe NDTV or India Today, it is not clear.

The makers have also tried to make sure the suspense, thrills, punch lines, and twists are present at all possible junctures to keep the audience hooked and they succeed to a larger extent in this effort.

The movie starts with a court scene where a Hindi journalist is under trial in a defamation suit filed against him by a media house. The story unravels and revolves around this Hindi-speaking journalist, very maturely and nicely played by Vikrant Massey. In fact, he shines through the film.

The movie doesn’t hold back when it wants to convey how media houses were used by politicians back then to spread news of their choice, the “media legend” in this movie is shown to define what’s news. “News is the truth that you want to tell to the public” – If they want the public to believe a particular ‘truth,‘ then that becomes news. Their journey from a one-room studio to a large empire is often built by being hand in glove with the ruling government.

The Sabarmati Express Arson

The film very graphically depicts the Godhra horror where Coaches S6 and S7 of Sabarmati Express are burnt down when on their way from Ayodhya to Ahmedabad with 200+ karsevaks in 2002. This is also interspersed with actual footage. When the star reporter goes to ground zero, she notices something else which points to sabotage, but she is directed by her boss to twist the truth and portray it as an accident. The Hindi journalist Samar Kumar however is unable to digest his “hero” showing an opposite picture of it. When he tries to push the truth to his bosses he loses his job, gets jailed, gets blacklisted by other media houses, and becomes a drunkard while the channel grows to become a very big name in the industry.

About 5 years later, there comes the newbie journalist Amrutha, played by a composed Rashi Khanna, who is given the task of creating a report on the 5th anniversary of the Sabarmati train burning. Being a newbie, she gets her hands on the truth and joins hands with Samar to expose the truth to the world.

The film’s plot is framed as an investigative journalism narrative that appeals to the audience. There are some scenes where the movie clearly exposes how the particular community celebrated India losing a cricket match with Pakistan back then and how that’s changing now. Some other major pluses of this film include – showing the perpetrators as the ones from the “they who shall not be named” community – which is the truth is commendable.

In toto, this is a fairly neatly written, crisp, and suspense-filled screenplay, with balanced acting displayed by the actors. Yes, there are a few scenes in the film that show “Hindu-Muslim bhaichaara” but we can overlook it for exposing the unspoken truth – the Sabarmati train burning. The film also shows a woman Chief minister in 2002, it is not clear why they chose to do so. 

Now coming to why the analogy of cricket that too Dravid and Sehwag I used in the beginning – there are different ways to win a match, some go for a swashbuckling, no-holds-barred approach, while others take it slow, watchful, and composed, striking only when the goal is near. Similarly, this movie knows exactly what it wants to deliver to its audience.

When it comes to horror, the film adopts a slight balancing act, which works for me as long as the storytelling remains intact without distortion. For instance, it depicts a chawl with a dominant community celebrating India’s victory against Pakistan. In another scene, a woman named Mehrunnisa leads journalists to confront the main perpetrator, saying, “Just because some people make mistakes, I don’t want my entire community to be blamed. I want to clean up the mess in my place first.” These moments are not just balancing acts but genuine attempts to address and unite the discontent within that community. So now you can see the filmmakers’ approach and style—was it Dravid’s calculated formula for victory or Sehwag’s bold and aggressive path to success?

The climax delivers a powerful punch, recreating the tragedy with remarkable sensitivity, accompanied by bhajans in the background. The close-up of Ram Lalla and the Ayodhya temple evokes deep emotions, leaving the audience teary-eyed as it pays tribute to the 59 forgotten victims. The film also references the Hindi language’s pride and the vision of Bharat’s resurgence. 

However, there are some drawbacks. The movie lacks English subtitles, and it’s unclear whether it will be dubbed into regional languages. Even if it is, questions remain about whether the ecosystem will allow it to be widely screened.

NKR Iyer is a techie and a political analyst.

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