Chaniya Toli, produced by Anand Pandit and Vaishal Shah, is a Gujarati film which was released on Diwali and is making waves. It is the story of a group of illiterate women villagers who rob a bank, guided by a streetsmart man. The film is mounted on a huge scale and looks like a superior product in every respect. The protagonist’s decision to help the villagers is amusing and a bit far-fetched. Yet, it works. The way he trains the women and the eventual bank robbery episode make for a great watch. On the flipside, things happen rather conveniently for the gang and the ending is simplistic. Also, the writers and directors Jay Bodas and Parth Trivedi make no attempt to focus on the family life of the women robbers. Who are in their family and how they were allowed to commit a crime by their folks; the makers simply don’t touch upon this crucial aspect at all. Lastly, a few scenes remind of Amitabh Bachchan’s Aankhen, but no complaints here. Yash Soni rocks the show as the protagonist. The film needed an actor and star of his calibre and he comes out with flying colours. Ragi Jani (Bhiku Dada) lends able support. From the bank robbers, Netri Trivedi (Naina) leaves the maximum mark due to her character, followed by Nikita Sharma (Sheetal), Jassi Gadhvi (Jiviba), Sohni Bhatt (Malti), Heena Jaikishan (Hiral), Kalpana Gagdekar (Bakula) and Shilpa Thaker (Rudi). Jay Bhat (Zala; cop) and Chetan Dahiya (MLA Chauhan) are entertaining. The song ‘Popat’, featuring Janki Bodiwala of Vash and Shaitaan fame, is foot-tapping. All in all, Chaniya Toli is a good timepass film for the whole family.
My rating – *** out of 5!