The Big Bull Review: Abhishek Bachchan Delivers An Impressive Performance In The Film That Rises And Falls Like The Stock Market

• Reviews
• Updated:April 08, 2021 07:30 IST

• Authors: Zinia Bandyopadhyay (Editorial Team)
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Abhishek Bachchan's The Big Bull had been announced years back and last year, the fact that it will arrive directly on OTT was confirmed. While we had been eagerly waiting for this one to know what the story of Harshad Mehta was like, something major happened- Scam 1992 released! It is a web series on the same topic, and as a series, it probably got way more time to explore details about the man who was called the 'Amitabh Bachchan of Stock Market'. Pratik Gandhi's performance was praised and Hansal Mehta knows his craft. Why am talking so much about Scam already- because the comparisons are bound to happen. But, in this one, this is probably the only time the series will be referred to since I had, somewhat deliberately, not seen the series yet. Yes, this one would be the review of The Big Bull, from someone who hasn't watched Scam.

The story of the film is based on Harshad Mehta- and how he used not just insider trading, but also used the loopholes in the Indian banking system to take the economy and the stock market to a new height. This film portrays him as a man who is more ambitious and greedy, who aspires to fly and achieve all his goals and his dreams within a short period. He is gritty, and has his eyes on the goal, and is the man who dares to dream big. In this film- rather than giving a judgement on how the man was, it simply tells the story. But you know the tone towards Arshad Mehta is positive. He has been renamed as Hemant Shah in this one.

The best part about the film was Abhishek Bachchan. What a performance this man delivered. He is impeccable as Hemant Shah. He becomes Harshad Mehta with his body language. He also brings out the nuances in the character. Through the few years which saw the unimaginable rise and the great fall of the man, he must have felt so many emotions, sometimes many at once. Abhishek brings out those with elan. We see him invest more into stock due to a debt, and get into it wholeheartedly. We see him manipulate the market to his benefit, become good, all this while not losing the human touch. He also doubles up as the man for whom family is of paramount importance. This one truly belongs to Abhishek.

Sohum Shah plays his younger brother Viren, and he has more chunks than most other characters. It is difficult to believe that this is the same man who played the lead in Tumbbad. He is the one who wants to reap the benefits, but can not take the leaps like his brother. However, while Hemant's character has a full arc, Viren is very flat and we do not see much shade of this man.

Ileana D'Cruz plays journalist Meera Roy, modelled after Sucheta Dalal. She enters the film a little later, but she is outstanding as an investigative journalist who wants to get deeper than the surface. She is also shown as the narrator later.

There are some brilliant actors like Supriya Pathak, Sourabh Shukla, Nikita Dutta and Samir Soni. While they have limited screen time, they shine bright!

The brilliant performances are perhaps the only reason why I would recommend people to watch this movie. The weakest point of the film is undoubtedly the direction, that not just makes it all haywire, but also makes you lose interest in between, quite often. In a long film that spans over 2 and a half hours, consistency could have made it a great film to watch. However, director Kookie Gulati jumbles it all up. A very small example would be how messed up the narrative technique in this one has been. It opens with a scene, goes back to a flashback, gets Ileana's Meera as the narrator in between, and shows travel back and forth in time for no reason at all. In a film that has to make audiences understand what loopholes Hemant had used to become the Rising Bull of Stock market, it can leave audiences confused with the narration itself.

The cinematography is good. The film has limited songs and yes, Carryminati's Yalgaar features here at the very beginning. The background score could have been better. The film works in bits and parts and has its moments that will get you hooked. But most of the time, the screenplay is left so loose that you might end up losing interest. After all, 2hours 35 minutes is not a short span for a film!

All in all watch this film for Abhishek Bachchan and the cast who delivered an earnest performance.