3 Storeys is an amalgamation of 3 stories of different people whose life converge as they live in the same chawl in a locality in Mumbai .
Even though some plots might seem like a regular leaf out of the happenings in a hustling bustling locality, its the screenplay and overall treatment that make those same stories seem like freshly minted ones. Thats how the essence of this simple yet thrilling movie is.
A maverick woman (Renuka Shahane ) who is stuck up on demanding an unreasonably high price for her apartment ; A young man (Pulkit Samrat )desperately looking to buy a suitable accommodation in that area ;Two young people (Ankit Rathi , Aisha Ahmed) from different communities in love with each other against the wishes of their families; A woman (Masumeh) coping up with life and her alcoholic,abusive husband and trying to overcome her past heartbreak (with Sharman Joshi ).
Seems pretty regular.. Isnt it ?
But what if a pinch of surprise and suspense is added to the same stories, what if each of the stories seem to have a hidden past ?
Well, that would churn out a mild little thriller. And that’s what is different about this movie here.
Watch the trailer here:
The plot and the characters are gripping right from the beginning. You can see things unfolding and yet keep guessing how it would turn out to be.The life in the chawl has been depicted in an interesting way. People intermingle and socialise ,yet keep their own secrets and fight their own demons. You wonder if the facades are real or there’s something more to the characters. But the writer ensures that he keeps the story light .
The writer ( Althea Dalmas kaushal ) , the director ( Arjun Mukherjee) and the editor ( Arindam Ghatak ) have a done a pretty neat job. In fact the cinematographer Will Humpris and Clinton Cerejo (background score ) deserve a lot of credit too for the atmospherics.
The camera focusing on the faces stayed enough to bring out the brilliance of the fine set of actors without getting too experimental. The cinematographer ensured our attention stayed where the director wanted it.
The duration is short and crisp 100 minutes without any sagging bits .
Performances are good .
Renuka Shahane is brilliant as the maverick lonely woman and it was a pleasure to see the actor after a long time.
Pulkit Samrat was good in his wee bit role.
Masumeh , very effectively, brought out the pain suffered as an abused woman.
Sharman Joshi was good as always but plain with nothing much to write home about. He probably did not have that meaty a character to be able to display his worth as an actor.
The two new comers , Ankit and Aisha ( as Suhail and Malini ) were commendable. Their display of perfect mix of innocence and freshness made their characters very realistic.
There were few others who were as good even in their little roles , like Malini and Suhail’s mother.
The writer, as an ace up his sleeve, adds twist towards the climax that adds further to the charm of the story.
Overall, I think the movie is definitely worth a watch .. for the freshness of its story telling, for the mild thrill / suspense added to its treatment and for the fine set of performances and ensemble cast .
This short,crisp and refreshing one is definitely worth your time and money.
Score 7 on 10.