Homebound Movie Review: A Film About the System Failing the Underdogs

After earning a 9-minute standing ovation at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and a successful run in the film festival circuit, Dharma Productions and Neeraj Ghaywan’s ‘Homebound’ finally arrived in cinemas worldwide on Friday, September 26.

The film is a heartbreaking yet beautiful story about two childhood friends, Chandan and Shoaib, who apply for the national police exam. ‘Homebound’ shows the discrimination and struggles the two friends face in chasing their dreams because of belonging to minorities, Chandan being from a Dalit caste, and Shoaib being from a Muslim community, in Indian society.

‘Homebound’ is based on Kashmiri journalist Basharat Peer’s New York Times article ‘Taking Amrit Home’ (now retitled A Friendship, a Pandemic and a Death Beside the Highway). Neeraj Ghaywan has written the script with dialogues provided by Varun Grover and Shreedhar Dubey. The story is nuanced and perfectly highlights the sensitive subject matter of casteism and Islamophobia in the Indian community.

The film humanizes the struggles of these people, emphasizing the importance of human dignity above all else. It deals with these themes in a pragmatic yet empathetic manner, instead of melodramatizing them; therefore, the subtlety of the story has a more forceful impact on the viewers.

The narrative also humanizes the aspirations and dreams of the underdogs in society when all the odds are set against them. Both Chandan and Shoaib aspire to join the police force despite the discrimination they face from society.

Although their chances to make it are eventually diminished because of the tedious bureaucratic system, the film reinforces that their dreams and aspirations are significant because their caste or religion does not make them less-than.

Despite, the difficult themes of India’s official entry for the 2026 Oscars, there are various moments of relief as well, with Chandan and Shoaib’s heartwarming friendship, with their families’ overcoming their struggles, and Chandan’s love story with Sudha. These little joys create some relief from the more difficult moments in the film, but they are also rewarding for Chandan and Shoaib, emphasizing that their self-worth and happiness are not limited to climbing the social ladder.

The main actors, Vishal Jethwa (playing Chandan) and Ishaan Khatter (playing Mohammed Shoaib), have done a phenomenal job with their characters. They have depicted their characters subtly and realistically, not overdoing the difficult moments, but conveying the strongest emotions with subtlety and restraint, which complements their characters’ arcs and keeps the story grounded in realism.

Other notable performances came from Harshika Parmar, who plays Chandan’s sister, and Shalini Vatsa, who plays his mother. Parmar perfectly portrays Vaishali’s suppressed frustration with her parents for prioritizing her brother’s dreams over hers. When she confronts her brother about it, she does not scream at him or scold him badly, but simply complains about her struggles, which makes her character very relatable. Vatsa has done a fabulous job with her role, especially in the second half of the film, giving viewers a heartbreakingly beautiful portrayal of a mother’s longing.

Although Janhvi Kapoor's Sudha gets limited screen time, her character is simple yet impactful, from encouraging Chandan to pursue a college education to coming to terms with his working in a mill to support his family. She is not merely a love interest, but someone who influences Chandan's perspective of the world, and Kapoor depicts the character with the simplicity that complements the narrative, leaning away from the Bollywoodization of such characters. 

The devastating beauty of the film is enhanced by the cinematography of Pratik Shah, who provided stunning visuals that enhance the realism of the story. Significant scenes are shot by the riverbank in their village; although there is not much focus on the riverbank, it becomes a space of retreat, of contemplation, and of tension for both Chandan and Shoaib. There are various other scenes where Shah has shown nature becoming a host for the characters’ discussions. Shah has fully optimized the rurality of the film’s locations and balanced it out perfectly with the subject matter of the film, which complements the narrative instead of diverting attention from it. The second half of the film is shot along a highway, featuring desolate fields, emphasizing Chandan and Shoaib’s desperation during their journey home.

The empathetic storytelling, the emotionally resonant acting, and the beautiful cinematography make ‘Homebound’ a devastating yet authentic film about casteism in India, resilient friendships, and dreaming despite all odds.

This article was previously published on UAE Moments. To see the original article, click here