The spiky relationship between a father and son, which shapes the narrative in ‘The Mehta Boys’, leads us to predict a resolution in which things will get better. The theme has that familiar predictive tilt built into it, but what lifts ‘The Mehta Boys’ are the little spurts of unpredictability built into the script of Boman Irani’s directorial debut.
That, and the performances, which are all pitch perfect.
You know that Boman Irani will inhabit Shiv Mehta without a degree of separation, the actor’s suavity giving way to his elderly character’s slightly-bent-shoulders, mostly-lost-after-the-death-of-his-wife situation. No surprise there, because Irani’s irascible, eccentric Parsi gent is an amalgam of the many Shivs he, and we, may have encountered: this is his territory, and he revels in it.
The junior Mehta boy, Amay (Avinash Tiwary) lives in Mumbai, and has been trying to hack it as an architect under the benign but demanding eye of the owner of the firm (Siddharth Basu). As the son who left home but hasn’t still found his feet, either at his workplace or in his ramshackle flat, Tiwary is, as always, very good.
Netizens praise Avinash Tiwary for his amazing performance:
#MehtaBoys is a treasure, and Avinash Tiwary is its beating heart. His performance is nothing short of sublime. The father-son story is a must-watch for every cinephile.#AvinashTiwary pic.twitter.com/ux35sRgAfG
— Nishant Bhuse (@nishantbhuse) February 7, 2025
Avinash Tiwary, in #TheMehtaBoys, offers a heartbreaking and utterly human portrayal that will linger in your chest. Another fine performance by the actor… pic.twitter.com/z9Zjgcyay6
— Fenil Seta (@fenil_seta) February 7, 2025
These pushes and pulls come to the fore as the tale, written by Irani and Alexander Dinelaris, progresses. While the writing is on point, things get constricted in a few places, making the film lose a bit of its fluidity. You wish those scenes had been given more breathing time.
But those are minor niggles. In all the duds that Bollywood is serving up these days, ‘The Mehta Boys’, which looks at daddy issues with understanding and empathy, and the things that make relationships tick, and stick, is well worth your time.
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