Gharat Ganpati Movie Review : A layered story of family and relationships

Where there’s a family there are bound to be differences of opinion. Some get resolved right away, others take time. But the bond of a family reigns supreme. If Gharat Ganpati was to be explained in brief, this would largely be what the film is about. However, this film is much more than a family drama. It’s like a chocolate croissant – layered, buttery, salty, with just the perfect hit of sweet chocolate.

The story revolves around the Gharat family and their Ganeshotsav celebrations. The seven-day celebrations bring all family members together at their ancestral house in Konkan. It’s a full house with Mai and Appa (Sushama Deshpande and Dr Sharad Bhutadia), the matriarch and patriarch of the family, their two sons Bhau and Sharad (Sanjay Mone and Ajinkkya Deo), daughter Kusum (Shubhangi Gokhale), daughter-in-laws Ahilya and Sunanda (Ashvini Bhave and Shubhangi Latkar), Ahilya and Sharad’s son and daughter Ketan and Neha (Bhushan Pradhan and Rajasi Bhave) Sunanda and Bhau’s son and daughter Jeetu and Deepali (Ashish Pathode and Pari Telang), Deepali’s husband Ashok (Sameer Khandekar) and Kusum’s son Ninaad (Rupesh Bane). And joining this big family for the Ganeshotsav is a surprise visitor, Ketan’s girlfriend Kriti (Nikita Dutta). Now the family doesn’t know that Kriti is Ketan’s girlfriend but suspect it. Does the couple’s plan succeed? What about Ketan’s mother – will she accept this relation? And what about the family’s internal differences? Do they come forth and get resolved? Each question presents in due time through the film’s plot.

Gharat Ganpati starts on a beautiful note, with shots of the Konkan landscape, making you fall in love with the natural beauty of the region. The cinematography and visual treatment of this film is worth a note making it a treat unfolding on the big screen. The music by Sanket Sane hits all the right notes as well. But the cherry on the cake are the performances.

Gharat Ganpati has a stellar cast of seasoned and young actors and each of them delivers. Ashvini Bhave, Ajinkkya Deo, Sanjay Mone, Shubhangi Latkar and Shubhangi Gokhale play the middle-aged second generation brilliantly, while Sushama Deshpande and Dr Sharad Bhutadia are adorable as Mai and Appa. Ashvini is to Gharat Ganpati what Jaya Bachchan was to Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani. Nikita Dutta’s Marathi debut is a sincere attempt. The actress doesn’t go overboard and her journey of integrating with the family is noteworthy. Special mention to the decision of not getting her to mouth Marathi lines just for the sake of blending in. This establishes her character in a much better way. Bhushan Pradhan gets a well-deserved character and makes the most of it. This is easily one of his best performances – restrained but impactful. Among the other actors, Rajasi Bhave, Pari Telang and Ashish Pathode stand out in the limited screen time that they get.

That said, the film spends a little more time on Kriti’s impression spree than exploring the interpersonal relations of the family. Some characters don’t get their due in the process and this also drags the film a little in the first half.

All said and done in the list of Marathi films that struck a chord with an ensemble cast, Gharat Ganpati carves its name in bold letters. It’s not an easy task managing such a big team, but director Navjyot Bandiwadekar does it well. The only other film from this genre where this happened would be Ventilator.

The film unfolds through conversations and incidents, and keeps you engrossed. Each family tiff may not necessarily have a happy ending like this one, but it’s films like Gharat Ganpati that make you ponder over what relations are made of and why they matter. That makes it worth a watch.