Trial Period Review: Directed by Aleya Sen, the 2023 Hindi romantic comedy drama film stars Genelia Deshmukh and Manav Kaul in the lead roles. Premiering on JioCinema on July 21, 2023, it also features Zidane Braz, Shakti Kapoor, Sheeba Chaddha, Gajraj Rao and others in pivotal supporting roles. Sen also wrote the movie along with Manoj Kumar Khatoi contributing to the cinematography. Shantanu Moitra, Arko Pravo Mukherjee, Mago and Mayank, and Kaushik Guddu have composed the music.
The heartwarming film presents the significant cast members entangled in a dysfunctional family arrangement and attempts to unravel the complexities of modern families. Produced by Jyoti Deshpande, Hemant Bhandari, Amit Ravindernath Sharma and Aleya Sen, its runtime is 2 hours and 5 minutes.
Trial Period Review Does Not Contain Spoilers
Trial Period Review: Discussion
The movie’s plot is as direct as it could be. We have a small close-knit family of a single mother Anamaya Roy Choudhary aka Anna and her beloved young son, Romi played by Zidane Braz. From the very first look, you can catch the one missing piece – the father – as per the usual heteronormative family setup deemed as the conventional norm in Indian families. Anna’s life is jam-packed with her earnest attempts of balancing her career and her son’s upbringing. Yet, a conversation at school kickstarts the inevitable curiosity in her son’s mind about his absent father.
In response to that, Anna lays out the trajectory of her life, and the eventual backing out of the male figure in their lives. This brings her son to the brewing up an out-of-the-box plan when he demands a “father on rent” for a 30-day trial period. Welcoming Manav Kaul’s Prajapti Dwivedi aka PD into their home, they soon realise how much their ways of life are poles apart. And though the original plan is to make Romi detest his trial period dad so that he’s never troubled by these thoughts again, we all know how that’s going to end early on.
What initially presents itself as a plot wrapped up in a simple comedy packaging, gradually develops into a somewhat serious drama at one point. And while that sums up the average Indian dysfunctional familia setup, it doesn’t however allow for the two adults in the picture to see themselves as individuals outside of this arrangement.
Genelia’s character could’ve easily become one I could’ve rooted for, but somehow, the lack of emotional foundation in her personal characterisation caught me off guard with how I just couldn’t bring myself to care much for her. In a specific scene with Kaul, she finally opens up her heart and speaks of the struggles she’s faced as a single parent. However, her delivery at that point falls tragically flat, and what could’ve pushed the viewer in her corner, again brings the vibe down. She’s always stood steadfast as one of the likeable actors who’s won the audience by her effortless charm, but I couldn’t feel for her character in Trial Period. Either the lacuna of profound dialogues brought her down on one side, or the excessive melodrama on the other only allowed for theatrics that weren’t asked for.
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Kaul’s PD was an unlikely choice opposite her, but it minimally worked in the favour of the plot on the surface. Zidane portrayed the young, loving Romi well by balancing the usual endearing qualities of kids that age and their theatrics that quickly tire out adults.
Certain scenes, though meant well, but they couldn’t carry the conversation of loneliness felt by a single parent, rather they ended up blaming the very issue trying to address and back up. Some of Genelia’s dialogues even point at her signifying modern solutions, but in the end, the movie ends up offering her character the constricting resolution fuelled by the traditional heteronormative standard.
Additionally, like numerous Bollywood movies, this one too, incorporates the extended family’s presence in it by roping in Bengali parents as a secondary involvement, mostly for the sake of comic relief initially. The stereotypical representation, however, isn’t as over the top as many other films (thankfully), and it’s ultimately pushed back in the latter scenes.
Trial Period JioCinema Movie: Final Thoughts
It felt great to see Genelia Deshmukh on screen in such a light-hearted context again, and even her pairing with Manav Kaul, an unlikely reel match, emerged as a surprising factor for the movie. However, despite knowing very well how the film was going to conclude their respective stories, it didn’t do much to engage with them as individuals. Even though the official description of the release from JioCinema talks about venturing into a story that dissects the complexities of modern families, the overall structure and plot execution of the Trial Period still seems to be a caught up in the same old hierarchy of conventionality.
It offers a light viewing experience for the weekend. Unfortunately, not something that’ll stick with the viewer in the long run. The first quarter of he film reminded me of the old 2000s flicks we used to watch all the time on TV without a care in the world and enjoy just being in the moment, but them it soon simmered down into the common hackneyed romantic track and pulled my attention away.