Baby Do Die Do Movie Review Huma Qureshi Fronts A Fast Paced Revenge Drama

. But Baby Do Die Do? Can there be a clunkier title? Or is it plain kinky?

I went into the theatre wondering what I was in for, and I’m happy to report that fans of desi-style South Korean actioners are in for a treat: Huma Qureshi playing a deaf-mute contract killer comes up with an implacable stare, and a weapon hiding in plain sight, as she goes about decimating her victims one after another, getting support from a solid ensemble.

The grey-blue screen, the acid rain, the frequent pull-backs to give us a panoramic view of Mumbai at night, people clawing their way up in chawls and high-rises, and the things they do in the dark when no one’s looking: in this Sion-via-Seoul aesthetic which the film commits to completely, no punches are pulled, and the pace rarely flags.

There’s a backstory to Baby (Huma Qureshi) and her doings. Of course there is. Childhood trauma involving the murder of a twin sister, coupled with adept adult grooming even as she is surrounded by people who are as stuck as her, leads her into becoming a killer for hire.

This creation of a criminal family which isn’t related by blood is an old trope, but refreshed well here: what they are up against is the old-timey underbelly of the city, comprising hard-nosed builders and their goons, businessman rivals and their wives, corrupt cops on their rounds. Again, figures we’ve seen in mob movies (Ram Gopal Varma comes to mind), but given distinct outlines here.

One of the best realised segments belongs to Baby and the man who is in love with her. Siddhu (Rachit Singh), who had come to Mumbai with bigger dreams, is now content with teaching the chawl youngsters their notes, even as he yearns for Baby. This is a felt romance, and gives this grimy and grim film, provides much-needed softness.

There are a couple of confused, contrived patches, and the big reveals towards the end aren’t really as well hidden as the film thinks they are. But those aren’t deal breakers: the writers — Jasmeet K Reen (Darlings), Parveez Shaikh, and Samant (Single Salma) have done a good job in not letting us fall out of the movie.

A sequence set in a gay nightclub, with a raunchy shake-shake led by Saqib Saleem Qureshi, is striking. Helping good actors break out of a mould is also something on display here: Seema Pahwa as a seasoned cop, making the rounds of her city, is a sight, as is Sikandar Kher as a guy who wants more, and Chunky Panday who does benevolence laced with a little something, amongst others.

Qureshi, her eyelashes artfully and spikily done, her face unvarnished and set, leads from the front, as she hunts down her victims and long-ago killer. Anyone looking for a fast-paced revenge drama, in which the city is a character, as grasping as the humans, here’s your film.

Baby Do Die Do movie cast: Huma Qureshi, Chunky Panday, Sikandar Kher, Seema Pahwa, Vidya Malvade, Rachit Singh Baby Do Die Do movie director: Nachiket Samant Baby Do Die Do movie rating: 3.5 stars