Vegali Vaat

Story: Sonu, a happy-go-lucky girl from Vidarbha finds herself in crossroads when her father - Ram, a farmer, is asked to repay a loan in 48 hours by local moneylenders. In order to help her father out, a tricky situation puts her relationship with him to the test...


Review: Several Marathi films have highlighted the plight of farmers with thought-provoking stories. Filmmaker Achyut Narayan’s Vegali Vaat is another decent addition to the league. Though the first half of the film focuses on the everyday struggle of farmers, that can be a little mundane, the film, however, manages to tell a gripping story with its smart.

The film begins in a small town of Vidarbha region, where Sonu, (Anaya Phatak) a bright student struggles to study at a local school. Her father Ram (Sharad Jadhav) who is a farmer is devastated since sudden hailstorm destroys the crops. To make things worse, Ram is asked to repay a loan within 48 hours by local moneylenders and he didn't receive wages from the government either to pay them back.

Unable to find help from friends and neighbours, Ram decides to end his life; to his luck, his wife (Neeta Donde) and daughter manage to stop him. While the crisis takes a toll on the entire family, Sonu is determined to help her father out. A financially well-off family in the village - The Deshmukhs are very fond of Sonu because of her brightness and they agree to help her father out. But with an unusual request, that Sonu will live permanently with them. The predicament puts Ram and Sonu in a difficult situation as they struggle to find a way out.

What makes the film a decent watch is its simplicity of storytelling. The director gets rid of unnecessary drama and tells the story of how farmers have to struggle to make their ends meet. All the actors Yogesh Soman, Sharad Jadhav, Anaya Phatak, Neeta Donde manage to grip the attention of the audience with their convincing job. While somewhere the film drifts away from the topic in the first half, overall, it manages to be coherent and relevant.