In an era where cinema often prioritizes mindless entertainment, filmmaker Anubhav Sinha returns with a story that doesn’t just ask for your attention it demands your conscience. His latest offering, ‘Assi’ (meaning 80), which hits theaters on February 20, 2026is a searing exploration of a reality we often swipe past in our newsfeeds.
The title itself is a haunting statistic: approximately 80 rapes are reported every single day in India. But as the film points out, those are just the ones we know about.
The Story: A Life Altered in a Heartbeat
The film centers on The best (played by a brilliantly restrained Kani Kusruti), a Malayali teacher living in Delhi with her husband Vinay (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub) and their young son. Her life is shattered one night when she is abducted, gang-raped in a moving car, and left for dead on a railway track.
While the crime is horrific, the movie focuses on the “aftermath.” It follows the legal battle led by Advocate Raavi (Taapsee Pannu), an exhausted but relentless lawyer fighting a system rigged by corruption, patriarchy, and apathy.
Breaking the Fourth Wall
One of the most unsettling elements of ‘Assi’ is Sinha’s decision to interrupt the narrative. Every 20 minutesa message flashes on the screen, reminding the audience that while they are watching the film, another assault has occurred somewhere in the country. This isn’t just a cinematic gimmick; it’s a notification that makes it impossible to remain a passive viewer.
Performance Report Card
Taapsee Pannu: As Raavi, Taapsee delivers a grounded, sharp-edged performance. She avoids the “heroic lawyer” tropes, playing a woman who is visibly frustrated by the loopholes she has to navigate.
Kani Kusruti: Kani is the soul of the film. Her portrayal of a survivor trying to reclaim her normalcy—facing a school principal who won’t take her back and neighbors who whisper—is heartbreakingly real.
Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub: Perhaps the biggest revelation is Zeeshan’s character, Vinay. He plays a husband who doesn’t scream for blood or perform “heroic” anger. Instead, he simply stays. His quiet, unwavering support for his wife is a revolutionary take on masculinity in Bollywood.
The Verdict: Why You Must Watch It
‘Assi’ is not a “feel-good” movie. It’s a “feel-uncomfortable” movie. It exposes how society reacts to a survivor—from the school principal who fires her because “parents will feel awkward,” to the perpetrators who swap scarves in court as if it’s all a game.
The film serves as a mirror to our rot. It suggests that justice isn’t just about a judge’s gavel (played with great gravitas by Revathy); it’s about whether we, as a society, are willing to stand beside a survivor when the spotlights go out.
Read More: Assi Review : Why Taapsee Pannu’s New Courtroom Drama is a Slap to Our Collective Silence
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