Director – Swapna Waghmare-Joshi
Cast – Swapnil Joshi, Sonalee Kulkarni, Prarthana Behere, Ila Bhate
After several duds in January, Mitwa seems to be a life saver for Marathi cinema.
Mitwa, an acronym for ‘Mitra, Tatvadyna and Vatadya’ is made for young collegians who
discover love for the first time.
Shivam Sarang(Swapnil Joshi), a restaurateur and millionaire, falls for Nandini
Prabhu(Sonalee Kulkarni) when she refutes his advances. Both resist commitment, but in
different ways. This draws them to one another. Gradually, love blossoms. Shivam asks her
out and Nandini rejects. Later, she accepts, but with stipulations, and not before revealing a
secret that creates friction between the lovers. Swapnil Joshi doesn’t really fit into the shoes of a playboy but is acceptable as an
actor. Sonalee Kulkarni is the Shah Rukh Khan of Marathi cinema – same in every film. It is
Prarthana Behere who steals the show(despite her excessive and oily makeup). Ila Bhate
continues her trend of giving logical explanations to plot twists.
Swapna Waghmare-Joshi has made an honest attempt in direction. The minor flaws
do not irritate you(other than the ‘Jhakaas Mast’ logo which pops up in the song Satyam
Shivan Sundaram This was probably to impress 9X Jhakaas which is the film’s media
partner). The climax is dragged and has a small part borrowed from the 2012 Hollywood hit
‘The Vow’.
Scenes of the church were actually shot in St. Patrick’s Cathedral Pune. It looks
beautiful. The wedding scene is a must watch. The film moves at a healthy pace and subplots
are kept at a minimum. This is unusual for a Marathi RomCom. The music is in harmony
with the script. Aruna Irani is brilliant in her guest appearance.
If you have a typical ‘Sadashiv Pethi’ girlfriend then impress her on Valentine’s Day
with Mitwa. I’m going with three shors out of five.
Pratik Potdar