Among movies there is a genre which is best described as " survival drama" where the protagonist is trapped in a situation and getting free becomes a life threatening challenge due to adverse circumstances. Earlier there was a movie called " Trapped " where the hero gets locked in the top floor of a high-rise apartment. Another movie " The Martian" had the main character marooned on Mars. In this movie a 24 year old girl gets inadvertently locked in a room freezer of a eatery in a mall overnight while her loved ones and police keep hunting for her all the town. Here the enemy or antagonist for her is the extremely low temperature of around minus eighteen degrees to which she is exposed to for some hours.

Director Mathukutty Xavier makes the best of a screenplay which is different in nature in the sense that a major chunk of the scenes are restricted to the freezer room. The focus is on the physical suffering of Mili due to adverse conditions and scenes of her struggle to survive make for riveting viewing. All symptoms of hypothermia like shivering, confusion, fumbling hands are shown realistically. Janhvi Kapoor has acted superbly as the suffering girl who keeps her wits intact as she struggles to get the freezer to stop. She is helped by the realistic depiction of effects of hypothermia which makes it believable. Manoj Pahwa is good as the father and there are some heartwarming scenes of banter between father and daughter. Sunny Kaushal does the boyfriend's role well. Music of AR Rehman is pleasant to hear. There are a few minor flaws but they can be overlooked.

Survival thrillers are a rarity in any film industry, let alone Bollywood, but there have been quite a few initiatives in the past few years, and I must say, regardless of their successes or failures, I'm glad that they at least attempted to venture into this relatively uncharted territory.

Coming back to 'Mili,' it's an official remake of 2019's Malayalam film 'Helen', which starred Anna Ben (which I haven't seen yet, so I have no way of comparing the two). This appears to be a reasonably competent thriller if I evaluate it strictly on its own merits.

In addition to delivering the expected ingredients of suspense and despair, it also captured the essence of a father-daughter relationship that blossomed into something wholehearted. In addition, everyone's performances were also very commendable. Particularly Janhvi Kapoor.

She may need a dozen opportunities for improvisation, but one cannot deny her willingness to take on unconventional roles that will force her to grow as an actress. She still has a long way to go, but one thing is for certain, she is indeed on the right course.

The negatives out of the way first: there is much that is predictable and stereotypical in certain characters' behavior and plot outcomes. And the opening sequence begins with an ant, when there is a far more impressive creature in the story we are invited to care about.

All that said, even though we know this is a remake and the star is the producer's granddaughter; even though we know it would take far more time and healing for her recovery, that all slips over to the side in light of Kapoor's superb performance. Because that is this film's success: a smart woman, also a nurse, who keeps thinking of viable ways to survive in an increasingly impossible situation. And even tries to save her little patient trapped with her as well. She has both Courage and Compassion that make us want her to survive. I enjoyed this movie. 7.5 Recommended.