Released this week in the Eastern circuit, Ilead Films, Balwant Purohit Media and SRG Films’ Kusum Ka Biyaah is about a lockdown wedding.
Sunil Munda (Lovekansh Garg) lives in Jharkhand. He is due to get married on 22nd March, 2020 to Kusum Soren (Sujana Darjee) who lives in Bihar. But since Prime Minister Narendra Modi announces an all-India curfew on that day due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the wedding is postponed to 24th March. The baraat reaches Bihar and the marriage is solemnised on 24th. However, after the wedding, the entire baraat as well as the newly-weds are stranded in Bihar as lockdown has been declared. After some days, the Bihar district magistrate grants the baraatis permission to return to Jharkhand, but their entry in Jharkhand is not permitted. So the entire baraat returns to Bihar from Jharkhand, only to be stopped at the border by the Bihar authorities. Since the baraat only had permission to leave Bihar but no permission to enter Bihar, the authorities don’t allow them to enter. Consequently, they are forced to spend a couple of days on the bridge which links Bihar to Jharkhand.
Vikash Dubey and Sandip Dubey have written a story and screenplay, which fail to engage the viewers. The drama about a COVID wedding hardly captures the imagination of the audience because of the horrific memories associated with that period when there were deaths and misery all around. The proceedings are, therefore, not of the kind which viewers would enjoy watching. Even otherwise, the drama is so weak that it simply doesn’t engage the audience. Dialogues are routine.
Lovekansh Garg is alright as Sunil Munda. Sujana Darjee is ordinary as Kusum Soren. Pradip Chopra lends nice support as Kusum’s grandfather. Raja Sarkar provides average support as Sunil’s brother, Prashant. Suhani Biswas passes muster as Sunil’s sister-in-law, Revati. Panya Darshan Gupta leaves a mark as Sunil’s father. Rupali (as Mala), Rosy Roy (as Rekha), Atanu Mahajan (as Raja), Samir Kumar Dutta (as Panditji), Manoj Ojha (as Bihar chief minister), Sri Chandra Mukherjee (as Renu) and Sayantan Roy (as the postman) fit the bill.
Suvendu Raj Ghosh’s direction is dull. He is also handicapped by a weak script. Bhanu Pratap Singh’s music is hardly inspiring. Raja Sarkar’s choreography is weak. Bob S.N.’s background music is just about functional. Saurav Banerjee’s camerawork is average. Ummat and Prosenjeet’s art direction hardly deserves separate mention. Raj Singh Sidhu’s editing is loose.
On the whole, Kusum Ka Biyaah will meet with a disastrous fate.