Paresh Rawal‘s new movie, Shastry Virudh Shastry, offers a heartbreaking perspective on custody battles between parents and grandparents.
The courtroom drama is directed by Shiboprosad Mukherjee and Nandita Roy. Viacom18 Studios and Windows Production produced the movie. It stars Paresh Rawal, Mimi Chakraborty, Shiv Panditt, Neena Kulkarni, Kabir Pahwa, Manoj Joshi, and Tiku Talsania. Shastry Virudh Shastry is a Hindi remake of the Bengali film Posto (2017).
The movie’s premise revolves around Yaman/Momoji, who lives in his grandparents’ care while his parents visit him on weekends. However, things get twisted when Yaman’s father decides to settle in the US, but Manohar is unwilling to let his grandson go. It premiered on Netflix on December 29, 2023.
Check out the trailer for the movie:
Shastry Virudh Shastry ending: Who did Yaman/Momoji end up choosing?
In Shastry Virudh Shastry, both Manohar and Malhar had certain problems. While the latter was a good father, he was also known to drink, drive, and leave jobs constantly. He aspired to move abroad, but there was no guarantee that his start-up would be a success. Manohar, on the other hand, was slowly moving into his disciplinarian phase as he was getting older.
Yaman/Momoji’s mother, Mallika, was a mute spectator who always observed things and indulged when required. However, she burst out one day, asking her father-in-law, Manohar, to take back the case. The case was an ego clash between the father and the son. She begged him to understand that she had to sacrifice a lot to be able to run the house on her own money, and it was about time that Momoji started living with her.
Although Manohar was softening up to the issue, his attachment to Momoji wasn’t letting him see what was best for the child. He wasn’t ready to accept that he could be too harsh at times, which Malhar and his brother Lalit had to deal with as kids. Accepting this would mean that Manohar could also be harsh on Momoji in the future. When he suffered a heart attack, the topic about his deteriorating health was brought up in the trial.
Manohar’s case had weakened significantly, but he still wasn’t willing to take it back. His lawyer, Jitesh, had prepared a strong argument about Malhar. He was willing to prove him as an abusive father with symptoms of alcoholism and how Mallika would fail to provide the quality time they had promised.
However, the judge smartly called in Momoji on the stand and asked him to share his choice, even though he knew that the child wouldn’t be able to make that choice. When Momoji broke down, as he was unable to decide, Manohar came forward and pleaded to the judge to dismiss the case. He wanted to see his grandson happy, and seeing him distressed made him unhappy. Manohar accepted that he was too attached to Momoji and didn’t have the courage to let him go, especially when he could never see him again.
Does Yaman/Momoji end up going to America?
Towards the end of Shastry Virudh Shastry, the judge dismissed the case and admitted that Malhar and Mallika had full rights to take their son to America. Before the trial had concluded, Malhar asked his father to understand that he might not be as talented as his brother, but he deserved the same love and respect from Manohar. Their issues remained unresolved.
When Malhar reached the airport with Mallika and Momoji, they didn’t get on the flight. This was because the latter hid himself in a trolley, hinting that he didn’t want to leave his grandparents. The couple returned to Panchgani to leave Momoji with Manohar and Urmila. They understood that their decision was not entirely good for Momoji.
So, they decided that he could stay with Manohar and Urmila for a few more years until he made up his mind about where he wanted to stay. This would also give them time to set up the business in America. At the end of Shastry Virudh Shastry, Manohar saw wisdom in Malhar’s eyes for the first time. Following this, they both embraced. Manohar expressed how proud he was of his son. He also accepted that he had been a bit harsh in the past.
Stream Shastry Virudh Shastry on Netflix.
