Pooja Meri Jaan Reviews: Mrunal Thakur and Huma Qureshi

Pooja Meri Jaan, a Hindi courtroom drama starring Mrunal Thakur and Huma Qureshi, waited four years for a release before it began streaming on ZEE5 on Oct. 2. Critics have now had their say, and the verdict is fairly consistent: the two leads hold the film together and its questions about consent and public judgement land, but the writing is too talky and too predictable to make it gripping. Here is the synopsis, the background and what the reviews say, outlet by outlet.

What the film is about

Produced by Dinesh Vijan and Amar Kaushik under Maddock Films, the film is directed by Navjot Gulati, with Vipasha Arvind as co-director, according to The Week. The Hindu lists the runtime as 117 minutes. Thakur plays the title role, Huma Qureshi plays Sana, a lawyer, and the cast also includes Vikram Singh Chauhan and Vijay Raaz.

The Hindu's synopsis describes a young woman whose rejection of a close friend is followed by his sudden suicide, after which she is charged with abetment and caught in a storm of public condemnation. The Federal adds that Raaz plays the prosecutor representing the dead man's family, and that a hashtag about Pooja's character goes viral as the case becomes a media trial.

Gulati co-wrote the film with Kanishka Singh Deo, and Niren Bhatt, known for Stree 2 and Munjya, contributed to the screenplay and dialogue, The Week reported.

Four years on the shelf

The release itself is part of the story. The Week reported that the film wrapped principal photography by July 2022 and was originally developed for a direct-to-digital release on JioCinema. The later merger of JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar disrupted that plan, talks with other platforms reportedly stalled over price, and a theatrical release considered in 2024 was put off. The Week also noted that Gulati had publicly criticised Maddock Films' release strategy. The Federal opened its review by pointing out that the film arrives "after four years in the cans."

Before release, Huma Qureshi described the film's structure to Filmfare: "What makes Pooja Meri Jaan interesting is that it does not look at its central situation from just one point of view." Thakur called Pooja "a deeply layered character" in the same report.

The critics who liked it

News18's Kashvi Raj Singh gave the film 3 out of 5 and called it "a rather uncomfortable but necessary retelling" of a familiar story. She wrote that Thakur "plays Pooja convincingly" and that "Huma Qureshi is a natural as Sana, and her dialogue delivery feels like a real-life conversation." Her main complaint was that Sana's internal conflict needed more attention.

Kartik Bhardwaj of Cinema Express also rated it 3 out of 5. "It is rewarding to watch a film which questions your notions, makes you introspect on your beliefs," he wrote, calling the film "thought-provoking." He added a clear caveat: "As most Indian courtroom dramas tend to be, this too becomes didactic and preachy." In his words, "There is less plot and more themes."

According to the Rotten Tomatoes listing, NDTV's Tanisha Bhattacharya and ABP News' Arfa Javaid each gave the film 3 out of 5. Bhattacharya called it "a chilled, one-time watch," while Javaid wrote that its central question "leaves you with a thought": "When a woman says 'no', why does the world keep looking for a 'yes'?"

The critics who were not convinced

The Hindu's Anuj Kumar saw the film as a companion piece to Pink and Article 375, and called it "a timely critique of patriarchal definitions of consent and female agency." His problem was with the treatment. The film, he wrote, "suffers from an overtly expository execution" and "relies heavily on dialogue to deliver its thesis." On the leads, he wrote that Thakur's "nuanced portrayal of trauma keeps Pooja from becoming a passive victim," while Huma Qureshi and Raaz "bring some life to staple courtroom mouthpieces." His closing line: "Not bad if you are scanning for a title on a lazy Sunday afternoon."

Puja Talwar of The Federal found the film "predictable in its treatment" and "dated." She wrote that "Mrunal Thakur plays her character well, capturing her frustration and anguish, while Huma Qureshi seems on familiar ground," and argued that the film "repeatedly falls back on the very stereotypes it seeks to expose." She did credit its use of social media and hashtags to show how public opinion is shaped.

Hindustan Times' Rishabh Suri gave it 2.5 out of 5, according to the Rotten Tomatoes listing, writing that "the film itself never quite arrives at a satisfying understanding" of the debate it raises.

Where the reviews agree

Across these seven reviews, three themes repeat. The performances, especially Thakur's, are the main reason to watch. The subject of rejection, consent and media trials is seen as relevant, with Cinema Express and News18 both tying it to the current social climate. And the execution, from the expository dialogue to the predictable courtroom beats, is the film's weak spot. Where these critics gave star ratings, they run from 2.5 to 3 out of 5.

Huma Qureshi's Sana draws mixed notes. News18 praised her naturalism, The Federal found her on familiar ground, and The Hindu saw the lawyer roles as written mainly to voice the film's arguments. For viewers, the consensus is a modest one: a well-meaning, watchable streaming drama rather than a must-see.

Pooja Meri Jaan is streaming on ZEE5.

Sources

Cover photo: Gabriel Hutchinson, Wikimedia Commons, [https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Huma_Qureshi_at_TIFF_2025_01.jpg](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Huma_Qureshi_at_TIFF_2025_01.jpg) (CC BY-SA 4.0).