7 Khoon Maaf - Review

7 khoon maaf is not a film that will give you an adrenaline rush, it's not a film that'll make your eyes pop out of your sockets, it's not a film that'll make you cringe because of violence either. It's a film that needs to be allowed to sink in. While it requires the viewer to be fairly attentive, it doesn't confuse or screw with one's brains. There are different ways of looking at this film. I, however, found one angle to be extremely interesting. There were various subtle instances in the film that hinted towards it but never firmly established anything because Sussana's character intended to be open to different interpretations. 

*Spoiler* - It had been mentioned in the beginning that sussana lost both her parents prematurely, and their death, particularly her father's, had a huge impact on her life. The constant appearance of her photograph with her father shows that his death proved to be a major turning point in her life. We're also told that after his death, Sussana looked for an image of him or similar traits in every man that she met. This is the theory my interpretation is built upon.

Sussana was an eerie character. She was lonely, yet positive. Depressed, yet hopeful. Calm, yet violent. Quiet, yet turbulent, and externally normal, yet internally bordering on psychosis. She lived in her own world. Her father left an image in her mind - the image of the perfect man. Throughout the film, Sussana not just looks for love, she looks for a man who can befit the image of that perfect man in her mind. 

Her only desire was to love and to be loved in return by a man just as great as her father was. She built her life and dreams around that desire and ceaselessly jumped from one man to the other in hope of getting that desire fulfilled. But, every time she started to take a step towards it, her husband showed his imperfect side and then she had to restart all over again. Hence, it wasn't just the abuse, addiction, blackmail or violence that compelled her to murder her husbands, it was the fact that their negative traits automatically disqualified them from being the 'perfect man' that Sussana wanted to spend her life with. Since they were no longer a part of her dream, they were useless and had to be done away with. According to her, anyone who proved to be a hindrance or disturbance in the course of her path had to be removed (illustrated by the story that she shot the mad dog who kept barking at her when she went to school)

So my conclusion is that sussana spent most of her life chasing her dream. She had everything - a big house, three loyal servants, a loyal companion-cum-confidant. All she needed was a partner to convert her dream world into reality. Unfortunately, she never found him. 

Coming to the climax, that left many people scratching their heads, I think it was quite simple to figure out. The 7th murder was of her servant, Maggie. After killing Tarafdar (Naseeruddin Shah), she knew she had to get away without getting caught. At this point the scene where sussana tries to seduce Arun under the pressure of her ehsaan suddenly comes back to your mind. She knows that she can get away because Arun is standing at the helm all ready to prove that she's dead (in order to return back the favor) so she sets the house on fire and runs away. In short, Arun was her partner-in-crime this time. her servant, Maggie, just happened to be in the wrong place in the wrong time. Sussana never intended to die herself.

Another observation that I made was that she decided to become a nun for a reason. It established her new identity legally. She was no longer sussana, she was just anna. Her being a nun was the lifelong cover she could peacefully live under without the fear of facing any danger because a priest, under no circumstance, can disclose the confessions of any person. 

This is how I comprehended it. The beauty of the film is that there can be various different interpretations of it. 

Priyanka was simply brilliant. Unlike the common misconception, Sussana is not a menacing, scary character. she's delusional and enigmatic - which is exactly how Priyanka played it. Psychotics look normal and healthy, that's why they're psychotics. I don't think anyone else could have done a better job with sussana's character. She captured the sense of ceaseless foreboding that the character needed to exude at all times. Definitely a thumbs up for her.

On the flip side, I have to agree that the length could have been shortened a bit. The make up wasn't very impressive either. The husbands did a pretty good job minus the russian guy who was very forgettable. He did deliver some of the funniest lines of the film though. If someone did match priyanka's performance, it was Vivaan Shah in a power-packed debut. His unconditional and unwavering admiration for his saahib almost resonated with the classic tales of unrequited love. He played the innocent, doe-eyed boy completely besotted with the woman who gave him a new life. This boy is sure to go places with the kind of talent and screen presence that he has.

The only other complaint that I have with this film is that there was hardly any gore. It would have made the film a lot more juicier if we would have had the pleasure to see Edwin Rodriques being eaten up by the panther. 

I'd give it a 3.75/5 - Give it a shot and let it draw you in. You will not be disappointed. 

P.s - Did someone else think that the last scene where Sussana devilishly says, 'this time I'm going to drink his blood', followed by the evil laugh was somehow symbolic of the last supper? I cannot pinpoint the exact connection but the moment I saw it I felt it had something to do with it.