Stree is predominantly an attack on male chauvinism. It is a tale of injustice and revenge. Stree expresses the bizzare happening which is based on the urban legend of “Nale Ba” that became sensational in Karnataka during 1990s. The concept encircles around a single women creating havoc in the lifes of numerous males of the village. A mysterious female named Stree takes away men naked leaving off their clothes on the spot they were last seen.
This unknown stree is a witch who earlier lived in the town of Chanderi as a prostitute. She fell in love with a man who accepted her with all her flaws. But the people in the village separated the lovers. Hence she casts a curse on the entire village and seeks revenge from every man of Chanderi. The stellar cast further adds more charm to the movie. Rajkummar Rao is the pillar of the movie, who strongly holds the entire storyline together. His role as the talented tailor of Chanderi town is incredible. Even though the theme is women centric, Rajkummar Rao stands out with his flawless acting.
Though Shraddha Kapoor is the Female lead, she has not much to offer as an unknown female visiting the town during the festive season.Aparshakti Khurana and Abhishek Banerjee play best friends to Rajkummar Rao. Being the supporting characters they have brilliantly showcased their comical timings. Another important character in the movie is of Pankaj Tripathi. He has a little part but delivers an equally worthy performance.
The spooky mansion and scary forest sends shiver down the spine, aptly combined with the visual effects that make the movie more enthralling. A blend of peppy numbers along with a single mesmerising romantic number keeps us on our toes.Debutant Amar Koushik has exhibited his directorial skill with Stree, after being an assistant director in films like Aamir, Go Goa Gone, Fukrey and Beyond the clouds etc.
Amar has tried to unfold feminist view in the movie. The women is capable enough to give justice to herself and doesn’t need anyone to do it for her. The men being vulnerable and dressing as females to roam freely at night, while womans can freely go anywhere as they do not have any fear from Stree are visual treat to the eyes. In this town females warn their partners to stay indoors or stree may take them is contradictory to current scenario. At the end of the movie a statue of stree is put up at the entrance to protect their village highlights the movie gracefully.
The climax scene is abrupt and not explained properly. It is left for the audience to conclude or debate on. The film is proportionate in all the aspects of a good film making it a must watch. Stree is genuine film with a never seen before concept. Bollywood surely needs more films like “Stree”.