India’s Nari Shakti Wins the Vaccine War
When I heard about The Vaccine War, I unconsciously thought about Contagion- the 2011 movie, and the bone chilling, end of your rope reaction that it incited in me. After watching the pre-release premiere of Kashmir Files Director-Vivek Agnihotri’s upcoming movie- The Vaccine War: A True Story, on Sunday, August 20th, at the Union Landing Cinema in Union City, California, I realized how far-fetched imagination can be.
The two-and-a-half-hour movie starring Bollywood acting powerhouses like Nana Patekar, Pallavi Joshi, Raima Sen, Anupam Kher and others is a propaganda heavy production based on India's rapid response to creating and releasing India’s first indigenous vaccine named Covaxin to fight the global pandemic-Covid-19.
The film showcases the herculean effort put forth by the scientists at ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) and National Institute of Virology (NIV)- a research institute under the aegis of ICMR to bring forth the vaccine.
From isolating the virus and testing the vaccine on mice and non-human primates to human testing and securing approvals for use in not only India but also in hundred other nations- the first of its kind bioscience Hindi movie is a huge homage of sorts to India’s scientists and their perseverance and prowess in developing an indigenous solution in record time amidst numerous personal, political, local and global challenges.
Patekar seamlessly plays an over demanding, single minded, tech-unsavvy, media loathing Dr. Balram Bhargava-Director General of ICMR based in New Delhi and Pallavi Joshi is cast as the emotional, overworked head scientist at the Pune based research organization-NIV. Raima Sen also beautifully delivers as the villainous, foreign media stooge- science editor in a TV channel. Agnihotri’s dislike of the media and manipulation of facts by a media outlet is a front and center theme in the movie.
The three veteran actors deliver their parts perfectly and are very well supported by the rest of the cast.
The script is peppered with situational humor and is well intentioned but seems to be all over the place. Tighter script and editing would have made the movie a much better watch, despite the propaganda element.
I could not help but wonder if I was watching a documentary or a movie. The flow of events lacks coherence and though so many storylines are chased, one very essential piece of distribution of the vaccine all over the nation by Bharat Biotech is missed out completely.
Agnihotri has added generous doses of jingoism and sloganeering and his stance as a pro establishment director is stark. Though Patekar as head of the medical institute delivers the dialogues of India’s move towards self-reliance and can-do mantra with ease, and the other actors are also sincere in their roles, the weak storyline is unable to bind the audience to the narrative.
Too many topics are touched upon, but none are developed fully. From the agenda of the global pharma lobby and Prime Minister Modi’s pro science approach and science must prevail messaging in fighting the pandemic to India’s success as a vaccine producer and distributor to World Health Organization’s initial stand of non-approval of India’s vaccine- are all subjects shown in the movie but not developed in any depth.
Press coverage of the covid pandemic in India and vaccine development are only showcased in bad light and subtlety or substantive perspective is not the movie’s strongpoint. The director also steers clear of showing the hardships that the common man faced during the lockdown or any institutional shortcomings.
The one bright light in the movie is Agnihotri’s generous tribute to the contributions of women scientists in both Indian Council of Medical Research and National Institute of Virology in the production and release of the vaccine, amidst huge personal sacrifices. Though even this storyline could be further enhanced as shown in the 2016 movie Hidden Figures.
“Whenever we think about India’s success, it is focused on men, but in The Vaccine War we see India’s Nari Shakti (women’s power),” said Agnihotri at the movie premiere.
Director Vivek Agnihotri and movie star Pallavi Joshi
He also mentioned that the decision to make the movie was not an easy one as the common thinking was that people have suffered a lot during the pandemic and would not be ready to recall the suffering. But they (wife and husband duo-Agnihotri and Joshi) decided to make the movie to highlight the new India and the can-do spirit of this new India.
Joshi also spoke about the love and passion that has gone in making of the movie. “I have always wanted to play a superhero and in The Vaccine War, I play the role of one of the women scientists-who is a true superhero in my eyes. These women scientists succeeded in producing a world class vaccine in record time and not only saved lives of millions of Indian citizens but also lives of people in 100 + nations where India exported the vaccine.” commented Joshi.
Shalini Kathuria Narang is a software professional and a freelance journalist. She has reported for national and international newspapers, magazines and news sites. She is also a poet and her poems have been published in several anthologies including Starry Nights: Poetry of Diaspora in Silicon Valley and Pixie Dust and All Things Magical. She is a monthly contributor to Masticadores USA and has been published on Spillwords Press and San Antonio Press. She is originally from New Delhi and currently resides in the Bay Area, California.
