Ata Thambaycha Naay! Movie Review : A heartfelt story that makes you smile and leaves you teary-eyed too

When waste collection by sanitation workers was briefly paused during the COVID-19 pandemic, it took just a couple of days to show us how important a role they play in society today. Be it choked drainages, burst water lines or piled up garbage heaps, the municipal safai karmacharis are the first responders that get to work. Unfortunately, they’re also the first ones to bear the brunt of citizens’ wrath in such cases. Often it is the educated person that doesn’t think twice before covering their nose and making derogatory remarks about these workers. That lack of empathy and abundance the entitled behaviour also highlights the difference between education and literacy. In multiple scenes of his debut directorial, Shivraj Waichal sheds light on this.

At its heart, Ata Thambaycha Naay is an ode to the BMC’s sanitation workers whose life is a paradox – they simultaneously form the backbone of the city and are among the most neglected lot. The film is based on the real story of class IV BMC workers going back to school at the behest of Uday Shirurkar, the erstwhile assistant municipal commissioner of BMC’s ward B.

An underdog story, this one has an ensemble cast of some fine actors, including Bharat Jadhav, Siddharth Jadhav, Om Bhutkar, Prajakta Hanamghar, Kiran Khoje, Pravin Dalimbkar and Ashutosh Gowariker. Each of them delivers a heartfelt performance that takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions, making you laugh at times and cry at others. Bharat Jadhav takes a role that’s in complete contrast to his well-known comic characters and shows why more filmmakers need to look beyond comedy when it comes to casting him. Ditto for Siddharth Jadhav who doesn’t go off-track even once in his portrayal. Om Bhutkar gets the lines and body language right, to the point that he becomes the character. It’s not Om Bhutkar playing a teacher, it’s just the teacher you see. Prajakta Hanamghar, Kiran Khoje, Pravin Dalimbkar and Ashutosh Gowariker bring their A-game to their roles too. Parna Pethe, Shrikant Yadav and Rohini Hattangadi in small but pivotal roles are impactful.

On the technical side too, Ata Thambaycha Naay displays a strong case with a good screenplay (Omkar Gokhale and Shivraj Waichal), camerawork (Sandeep GN Yadav), sound (Pradyumna Chaware), music (Gulraj Singh) and production design (Ankur Aserkar). These attributes along with the performances hold the audience’s attention throughout.

Ata Thambaycha Naay is not an out-of-the-box concept. It’s an honest, ordinary-people-doing-extraordinary-stuff story that you may have seen before. It also has a few scenes that could’ve been shortened or done away with. But what makes the film stand out is the way Shivraj Waichal has brought everything and everyone together. In his debut feature, the director displays skills of a seasoned filmmaker.

To sum it up, let’s just say that you don’t necessarily need a star to make a film about underdogs work. Sometimes, the underdogs and the story have enough star power to get the job done, and Ata Thambaycha Naay is a nice example of this. Plus, if your audience is reacting well to pivotal scenes and clapping at the climax, you know you have a winner on the podium.