Babli Bouncer

Babli Bouncer is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language drama film directed by Madhur Bhandarkar and starring Tamannaah Bhatia. Produced by Vineet Jain and Amrita Pandey under the banners Star Studios and Junglee Pictures, the film follows the journey of Babli, a street-smart woman who becomes a bouncer at a nightclub. It premiered on 23 September 2022 on Disney+ Hotstar.

At the 2023 Filmfare OTT Awards, Babli Bouncer received 4 nominations, including Best Web Original Film and Best Actress in a Web Original Film for Tamannaah Bhatia.

Plot
Babli Tanwar is an uneducated young girl from Asola-Fatehpur, a small village near Delhi, where most people are bouncers. Despite being of a marriageable age, Babli still hasn't finished her 10th-grade education, and her teacher (nicknamed "Drum") is very upset with her and looks down upon her. Babli has also trained to be a bouncer since childhood.

At the wedding of the sarpanch's daughter, Babli meets Drum's son, Viraj Kaushik, who recently returned from London after five years of study. Babli develops a crush on him and tries to get close to him. As Viraj lives in Delhi, Babli plans to go to Delhi to see him. At the same time, Babli starts to receive marriage proposals. Babli manages to turn all of them down, as she likes Viraj.

Babli's friend since childhood Kukku, who has long had a crush on her, learns she is receiving marriage proposals and feels insecure. So he and his family bring his marriage proposal to Babli's family too. Babli's family likes Kukku but she considers him as a friend. After realising that Kukku works as a bouncer at a nightclub in Delhi, Babli decides to use him to get herself to Delhi. She pretends to like Kukku and asks him to get her a job in Delhi at first, and she tells him they can discuss their marriage after a year. Kukku's nightclub happened to be hiring a female bouncer, so he referred her to his club, and she got the job.

In Delhi, Babli meets Viraj several times. At Viraj's birthday party, a drunk Babli confesses to Viraj her feelings for him. Viraj rejects Babli and insults her for being uneducated and uncivil. Babli gets heartbroken and cuts her ties with Viraj. Upon hearing Viraj's words, Babli decides to change herself and improve her social status, not to impress Viraj but for herself.

She enrols in a class to continue her education, learns English, and gradually progresses.

Viraj and his friends visit Babli's club, during which he quarrels with the playboy son of a high-profile politician. The playboy points a gun at Viraj's head and threatens to kill him. Babli arrives at the scene and is able to solve it peacefully with her courage and brain. Viraj becomes very impressed and regrets rejecting her. He begins to chase her, trying to win back her heart. Babli tries to avoid him a few times and finally rejects him, telling him she no longer loves him.

Another night at the club, gangsters sneakily abduct a female customer. They force her into their car and flee, planning to rape or kill her. Babli happens to see the incident and decides to save the girl. She defeats all the gangsters on the road and saves the girl. The incident is reported by the media and Babli suddenly becomes very famous and popular. The Chief Minister of her state publicly awarded her a medal of bravery.

With the help of a wealthy customer whom Babli saved before, she opens her training centre to train female bouncers who want to follow in her footsteps.

Casting
In February 2022, Tamannaah Bhatia was confirmed to be cast in lead role as a female bouncer. In the same month, Abhishek Bajaj was confirmed to be a part of the cast.

Development
The film was announced in February 2022. The makers of the film arranged an muhurat puja for the team after the filming started.

Filming
The principal photography of the film started in mid-February 2022. The first schedule took place at Mohali, Punjab with an outdoor shoot, followed by New Delhi and was completed within 20 days. The final schedule took place in Mumbai from 22 April 2022. The film was wrapped up on 5 May 2022 in Mumbai.

Music
The songs are composed by Tanishk Bagchi and Karan Malhotra. The lyrics are written by Tanishk Bagchi, Shabbir Ahmed and Manaswi Mohata.

Release
Babli Bouncer was directly premiered on OTT platform Disney+ Hotstar on 23 September 2022.

Critical response
The reception of Babli Bouncer has been mixed, with critics offering varying opinions on the film. While some reviewers praised aspects of the movie, others found it lacking in certain areas.

In an article from The Indian Express, the film was described as a feeble attempt at a feminist fable, despite Tamannaah Bhatia's sterling performance. The review highlighted the film's weak execution of its feminist themes and criticized its overall impact, giving it a rating of 1.5 stars. Similarly, NDTV review echoed the sentiment of a lacklustre execution, stating that the film's attempt at portraying female empowerment falls short. The review commended Tamannaah Bhatia's performance but criticized the film's weak narrative and awarded it 1.5 stars out of 5.

India Today review criticized the film for excessive "wokeness," suggesting that an overemphasis on feminist messaging compromised the storytelling. The review highlighted that the film failed to strike a balance between its social messaging and engaging narrative, resulting in a less impactful viewing experience. The Hindu review pointed out that Tamannaah Bhatia's talent was overshadowed by the constraints of a straitjacketed story. The review commented on the film's limited character development and predictable plot, ultimately concluding that it fell short of expectations. Contrasting these reviews, The Times of India offered a more positive take on the film. The review commended the film's engaging storyline, Tamannaah Bhatia's performance, and the blend of action and comedy. However, it also acknowledged certain flaws, such as uneven pacing and underdeveloped subplots.

In summary, the reception for Babli Bouncer has been mixed. While some reviewers appreciated elements such as Tamannaah Bhatia's performance and the film's storyline, others criticized its execution, character development, and thematic delivery.