'Doctor G' Review: Ayushmann Khurrana Film Says a Lot With Too Little Time
'Doctor G' is the story of Dr Uday, the one male student in the gynaecology department.
Ayushmann Khurrana in a still from 'Doctor G'.
(Photo Courtesy: YouTube)
Dr Uday (Ayushmann Khurrana), who reluctantly enrolled in the gynaecology department, is walking the corridors of his college with his colleague Dr Fatima (Rakul Preet Singh).
A still from the film.
When Fatima tells her fiance that Uday is in her class, he laughs and asks, "In gynaecology?'
This summarises the main premise of Doctor G, directed by Anubhuti Kashyap. Dr Uday is the lone man in a class full of women, in a stream he believes he can't excel at because his gender puts him at a disadvantage.
To its credit, Doctor G explores how the reason behind Uday's incompetence isn't the fact that he's male but the fact that he refuses to make an effort.
The dialogues, written by Sumit Saxena, are believable for the most part, when not fighting the background score for space. Some of the epiphanies and monologues border on preachy but it's refreshing to see the women doing the preaching.
Shefali Shah in a still from the film.
For a society where people constantly assume ownership of women's right to choice and shame them for asinine reason, how willing would people be to approach a male gynaecologist?
Calling the entire premise unrealistic would be assuming that women across India have the same level of agency, which is categorically untrue.
On the other hand, the film hammers in the point that everyone is absolutely flabbergasted by the concept of a male gynaecologist, which is hardly realistic.
Ayushmann, equipped with an inconsistent accent, plays Uday convincingly. However, the stand-out stars of the film are Shefali Shah as the HOD (Head of Department) Dr Nandini and Sheeba Chaddha as Uday's mother.
Sheeba Chaddha in a still from the film.
As Dr Nandini, Shah uses fabulous restraint in her role, capable of changing the mood of the scene with a simple half-smile.
Chaddha as Lakshmi, on the other hand, is a brilliant comedic actor while also balancing it with her ability to portray complex emotions.
The rest of the female cast, including Rakul Preet, Shraddha Gautam, Karishma Singh, Anju Gaur, and Puja Sarup, all have roles that have one purpose – to give Uday the lessons he needs to evolve.
While Doctor G's insistence on the male hero journey and posturing isn't as heavyhanded as most Bollywood films, it's still unmistakeable.
A still from the film.
Even so, the observations that the film makes are more mature than many. The conversation surrounding abortion in the film is more nuanced than I expected and even though it's rushed, it's never problematic.
Doctor G's entire messaging though, is pretty surface level and the makers trying to tie multiple threads into the screenplay without assigning enough time leaves the audience unravelling yarn. However, I could overlook this facet because of the threads in question.
As someone who has always had a bone to pick with Ayushmann Khurrana films for leaning into the male saviour complex, seeing him play a hero coming to terms with his flaws at a gradual, natural pace was worth the watch.
Rating: 2.5 Quints out of 5
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)