Actor-director Kangana Ranaut pleasantly surprises with a rather balanced perspective on the social, political, and even the personal life of the late, great, yet controversial Indian Prime Minister.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️💫 (2.5 / 5)
By Mayur Lookhar
Political films in this era come with their own agenda. Once considered scarce, such content has increasingly become commonplace. The irony of most such films is that while they create a buzz in social, political, and media circles, that buzz often doesn’t translate to box office success. Make no mistake, some of these stories need to be told, but most aren’t crafted by reliable hands.
Actor Kangana Ranaut, now a Member of Parliament, has been very vocal about her socio-political views. Emergency (2025) was long billed as an opportunity to score political points on the big screen. Apart from playing the lead, she opted to direct it herself. Given its subject, it was bound to court controversy. Unfortunately, Emergency ran into trouble from the moment the teaser was dropped. Apart from issues with the Central Board of Film Certification, the teaser/trailer sparked outrage in certain quarters.
Political commentators were quick to point out that the makers seemed to have taken liberties on a few fronts. Contrary to the trailer, they noted that it wasn’t Indira Gandhi, but then-Congress president Dev Kant Barooah, who had coined the phrase “India is Indira, Indira is India.” Secondly, Sikh terrorist Bhindranwale openly declaring a demand for Khalistan was not entirely accurate. A respected veteran editor reiterated that when asked about the Khalistan question in an interview, Bhindranwale had said he had no such desire, but if Bibi (Indira Gandhi) gave it to him, he would accept it.
Emergency had nothing going for it early, and it was compelled to push its release. Honestly, it faced an uncertain future. The film has finally arrived but sans the buzz. Expectedly, the controversial line around Bhindranwale was cut, but Ranaut stuck to the ‘India is Indira, Indira is India’ line. Titled around a dark chapter in Indian democracy, many, including this reviewer, didn’t pin much hopes on finding any objectivity in the Ranaut directorial. However, with Ritesh Shah as writer, it would be premature to dismiss Emergency without seeing it.
The political events in the life of the late Prime Minister speak for themselves, but the curious aspect here is that a primary source material for this film is veteran journalist Coomie Kapoor’s book Emergency: A Personal History (2015). We haven’t read it, but Kapoor, who worked for The Indian Express at the time, is said to be critical of Gandhi’s decision to impose the Emergency. She is the sister-in-law of Bharatiya Janata Party member Subramanian Swamy. However, that is unlikely to influence a scribe of her repute. Besides, isn’t Swamy known to be a bitter critic of his own party leaders too?
Though titled Emergency, Kangana’s film plays more like a biopic on Indira Gandhi. A rather underrated but defining image is of a young Indira glaring at her paternal aunt, Vijayalakshmi Pandit, for isolating her sick mother. As the Prime Minister’s daughter, she was exposed to the political culture early. The biggest influence, though, was her grandfather Motilal Nehru, whose words on satta (power) stuck with her from an early age. The Emergency narrative is built on three aspects – Indira’s ascent in politics, followed by her self-destructive phase, and then redemption. Emergency encompasses all that is Indira. In times when the mandarins of Delhi are hell-bent on having a ‘Congress mukt Bharat’, redemption for Congress’ most iconic leader in a film led by an actor and BJP MP certainly conflicts with that narrative.
It’s here that Emergency stands out from the countless current political films that are unabashed in their goals. It is music to the ears of many critics when you hear a line like, “When praises start to hurt, it’s a reflection of things not being right.” A lesson for Bollywood, its mighty PR machinery, and sycophantic media.
Emergency is certainly no hagiography. It is no propaganda film, but Ranaut doesn’t miss an opportunity to highlight the unrest within the Congress party at the time, and it projects key opposition leaders in a glorious light. Maybe that’s politics, that’s life. As India’s first, and to date, only woman Prime Minister, Ranaut wisely draws your attention to the challenges that Gandhi faced both within her party and the larger political spectrum. She was a novice to start with, but it didn’t take long for Gandhi to stamp her mark in both domestic and international politics. Barely rated, Gandhi left a stark impression on then-US President Richard Nixon and French President Valery Giscard in her first meetings.
Back home, she startled both her colleagues and opponents equally. Up until the Indo-Pak war of 1971, Gandhi was revered even by opposition leaders such as the veteran Jai Prakash Narayan (Anupam Kher) and Atal Bihari Vajpayee (Shreyas Talpade). Four years later, though, she had most of them behind bars.
The politics are well documented, but it’s the personal chapters in Gandhi’s life that will intrigue viewers. Be it her father, husband (Feroze), elder son Sanjay, best friend Pupul Jayakar (Mahima Chaudhary), the change in the dynamics of her relationships reveals her emotional, vulnerable side. The Indira-Feroze equation is touched upon briefly, and certain disclosures appear to be in bad taste. The most controversial is her equation with her elder son, Sanjay Gandhi (Vishak Nair), a man who was said to be the chief architect of the Emergency, particularly the controversial forced vasectomies. Political ambitions do ruin families, but maybe Sanjay’s widow, Maneka Gandhi, may not be pleased with her late husband’s portrayal. Kangana Ranaut rightly doesn’t concentrate on Rajiv Gandhi, who entered politics only after the tragic assassination of his mother.
Most political commentators will tell you how Indira Gandhi was a great leader, but the Emergency was the biggest political blunder. Such a period is a reminder of how power corrupts even the most noble.
Kangana Ranaut has high self-esteem, which often leads her to go overboard in self-praise. She hasn’t delivered a certified hit in ten years, but that doesn’t dent her confidence. If she is honest with herself, Ranaut would quietly acknowledge how she has been underwhelming over the last few years. The Emergency trailer alone suggested that Ranaut has perhaps chosen optics over substance. Bad prosthetics and the squeaky accent. More than Indira Gandhi, Kangana sounds like Priya Raina, Sugandha Mishra, or Saloni Gaur impersonating her.
Far too often, we tend to overemphasize physicality and optics, and the net result is a caricature. Well, caricature might be harsh, but it wouldn’t be wrong to label this as an overly powdered AI version of Indira Gandhi. Kangana’s intentions are right, but the bad prosthetics and timid accent are a big turn-off here. Ranaut’s best moments in this film come in scenes where she speaks in her natural tone. Unfortunately, they are few.
Indira Gandhi is known as the Iron Lady of India. What we get to hear (endure) is anything but. Why would a good actor become a slave to accents and optics? The answer perhaps lies in Ranaut wanting to humanise the character by revealing her vulnerabilities. Mocked and dismissed by some of her own partymen, Ranaut’s Indira comes across as an underconfident character, particularly at the start of her political career. The political upheavals come with emotional challenges, and such scenes warrant a slightly ginger tone. This, though, is unlikely to pacify the humble viewers, many of whom are likely to be put off by the tone. Ranaut, however, comes into her own in the final half hour, where she regathers her thoughts and her courage to accept past mistakes, but moves ahead in life with renewed vigor.
Ranaut’s co-actor Shreyas Talpade served as a reminder of why an actor should focus on spiritual portrayal rather than optics. While Kangana dominates this screenplay, Anupam Kher is likable as Jai Prakash Narayan. If this is indeed his last act, then the late Satish Kaushik gave us a memorable performance as Jagjivan Ram. Mahima Chaudhary delivers a commendable performance as Pupul Jayakar, bringing depth and sincerity to her portrayal of Indira Gandhi’s close friend.
In a chat, Kangana revealed that maybe she shouldn’t have directed this film. That’s a bit harsh, but the early part of the film moves rapidly. At one stage, it felt like quickly turning over different chapters in Gandhi’s life. For all its flaws, it is the political and personal drama that keeps the viewer constantly engaged. The film didn’t have smooth sailing during its certification, but the final edit doesn’t appear to have many cuts. It’s alright to expose a hostile nation, particularly its barbaric crimes, but watching an enemy soldier smash an infant like a wooden stick is disturbing to watch.Though far from perfect, Ranaut gives a better account of herself as a director compared to her previous experience with Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi (2019).
Indira Gandhi’s life and political journey are a reminder of how important it is to stay grounded and not let power corrupt you. There may be no emergency today, but the divisive politics, the ugly scenes of bulldozing homes, controlling and suppressing the media serve as a reminder to the present day mandarins not to test the patience of the people. Back then, Dinkar’s poem Singhasan Khali Karo Ki Junta Aati Hai had become the slogan for J.P. Narayan and his wards to voice against autocracy. What goes around comes around. Who knows, in the near future, it could be a Gandhi marching against autocracy. Surely, the then establishment won’t impose an Emergency. Ah, would it?
Video review coming soon.
