This isn’t a Karan Johar movie with a guaranteed happy ending, a character declares in Binny and Family. Ssanjay Tripaathy’s film turns out to be a stripped-down, more realistic version of Johar’s fantasies about multi-generational families that stick together, whatever the circumstances.
Written by Tripaathy, Binny And Family stars Anjini Dhawan in her acting debut. Dhawan confidently plays a heroine who is 18, rebellious in the manner expected of teenagers and determined to hold on to her “space”.
Binny’s parents sometimes agree and sometimes disagree with her, partly because she is their only child and partly because they live in London. A visit from Binny’s paternal grandparents from Bihar annoys the rap-loving adolescent.
The grandfather mostly referred to as Baba (Pankaj Kapur) expects Binny to behave as though she is back in his hometown. Binny’s father Vinay (Rajesh Kumar) is too much in awe of Baba to challenge him. Binny’s mother Radhika (Charu Shankar) plays peacemaker, but can’t protect Binny when her problems with Baba erupt.
The made-for-TV film that is out in cinemas isn’t sorry to be safe. Banal in its observations and predictable to a fault, the 139-minute movie is salvaged by sincere performances and an overall lack of melodrama.
Binny And Family tries to avoid the moralising that is typical in films about the generation gap. However, a statement attributed to one of the film’s producers guides a conservative lecture on the importance of loving your grandparents, no matter how questionable their conduct might be: “A happy family is the foundation of the nation.”
The British setting is about as credible as is the extroverted Binny’s social life. She has exactly one friend (Naman Tripathy). Far too much time is wasted on Binny’s dull pursuit of her crush Dhruv (Tai Khan).
The focus on the Binny-Baba dynamic sidelines the more memorable characters. As Binny’s parents, Rajesh Kumar and Charu Shankar have a bunch of finely enacted scenes. The balance that Vinay and Shankar have achieved between Indian expectations and British realities is far more engrossing than Binny’s Gen Z angst and Baba’s boomer vibe.
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