Mimi is a 2021 Indian Hindi-language comedy-drama film written and directed by Laxman Utekar and co-written by Rohan Shankar. A remake of the Marathi film Mala Aai Vhhaychy (2011) by Samruddhi Porey, it is jointly produced by Dinesh Vijan under his banner Maddock Films and Jio Studios, and stars Kriti Sanon in the titular role a young woman who opts to be a surrogate mother for a foreign couple. Pankaj Tripathi, Sai Tamhankar, Manoj Pahwa, Supriya Pathak, Evelyn Edwards and Aidan Whytock feature in supporting roles.
Mimi was shot predominantly in Mandawa, Churu and Jaipur, barring a few days in Mumbai. The score and soundtrack were composed by A. R. Rahman, with lyrics by Amitabh Bhattacharya; cinematography and editing were handled by Akash Agarwal and Manish Pradhan, the latter of whom had also edited Utekar’s previous Hindi film Luka Chuppi, which had also starred Sanon as lead.
Following the non-existent theatrical releases due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Mimi was later planned for a digital release through the streaming services Netflix and JioCinema, with the scheduled date of July 30, 2021.
However, the film was released through the platforms on July 26, 2021, four days before the scheduled release as the film was released accidentally by Jio Cinema and went into torrent sites. The film received mixed reviews from the film critics, who praised Sanon and Tripathi’s performance, with many stating the role as the career best performance of Sanon but criticised the film for its contrived plot.
Filming
Principal photography commenced at Mandawa, Rajasthan by October 29, 2019. In an interview with Filmfare, Sanon confirmed it to be her first film where the protagonist is a girl. By December 2019, the team had completed 40 percent of the film’s production. The next filming schedule was planned from February 2020 for 30–40 days. Filming took place in Jaipur on February 10, 2020, where makers finished shooting major sequences within March 4, 2020.
Reportedly, a few days filming was stalled due to the Covid-19 pandemic induced lockdown in India. In June 2020, Utekar confirmed that five days shoot was pending which included an introductory song featuring artistes from United Kingdom.
The song (later deciphered as “Param Sundari”) was planned to be filmed by January 2021. He added that owing to the pandemic situations, big crew and cast travelling back to Rajasthan was not feasible. The international cast was called to Mumbai for the shoot as they were required for the continuity of the film. By May 2021, it was revealed that shooting has been completed.
Reception
Upon release, Mimi received mixed reviews from the film critics, who praised Sanon and Tripathi’s performance, but criticised the film for its contrived plot. Besides, the film is more liked by the majority of Indian audience due to the presence of emotional plot and unexpected twist ending.
The film turned out to be an average and one time watch from the critics and audience. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of 18 percent based on 11 reviews and an average rating of 4.5/10.
Renuka Vyahare of The Times of India gave four (out of 5) stars and said, “Mimi picks a topic and turns it into an engaging, empowering and compassionate tale on humanity and motherhood”. Taran Adarsh, in his review for Bollywood Hungama, wrote, “Mimi is a heartwarming saga, aimed at families. It will keep the audience thoroughly entertained. Had it released in cinemas, it had a good chance of becoming a success”, giving a rating of 3.5 stars out of five.
Umesh Punwani of Koimoi gave four out of five and said, “Mimi is a delightful blend of humour and emotions”. Sushri Sahu of Mashable India too gave 3.5 stars describing the film as a “feel-good family entertainer” and wrote, “Mimi is a family entertainer that might make you cry, laugh and smile all at the same time; If you’re into that, you will enjoy Mimi, which is enriched by Sanon and Tripathi’s performances”.
Calling Sanon’s performance in Mimi her career-best she wrote, “Sanon has outdone herself. As you see her shoulder the film with her craft, you will also see her deliver her career best performance; Mimi is Sanon’s labour of love all the way”.
Anupama Chopra of Film Companion wrote, “Mimi is content to operate at a simplistic, superficial level. Laxman puts together a roster of terrific actors, but Mimi rests on Kriti’s shoulders. She works hard – putting on weight, working with a Rajasthani accent.
In the climax, she is able to summon a wellspring of emotion but largely, her efforts are undermined by the script and her own inability to let go of synthetic Bollywood glamour.”
Jyoti Kanyal of India Today gave 2.5 (out of five) and said, “Mimi is a great attempt at bringing a social taboo like surrogacy to the centre stage. However, in trying to make it more entertaining and emotional, the makers lose a good opportunity. The film has some really funny scenes. If melodrama is something you don’t mind, you should give Mimi one watch”.
Anna M. M. Vetticad of Firstpost gave 1.5 (out of five) saying, “Writer-director Laxman Utekar’s new Hindi film is a muddled take on motherhood with clarity only on its conservative mission to condemn abortion. If it had been better written and directed, Mimi might have been considered dangerous anti-women propaganda.
To describe it thus would be a compliment though to the director’s storytelling abilities”.