The Girlfriend Movie Review: Good Intentions Lost in a Claustrophobic Screenplay
The Premise The Girlfriend, a 2025 romantic drama written and directed by Rahul Ravindran, attempts to deconstruct the anatomy of a toxic relationship. The film introduces us to Bhooma Devi (Rashmika Mandanna), a timid, soft-spoken postgraduate student of English Literature in Hyderabad. Her world is small, defined by books and a desire to please a strict, overbearing father (Rao Ramesh). Enter Vikram (Dheekshith Shetty), a charming student from the computer science department who sweeps Bhooma off her feet. What begins as a college romance quickly curdles into a stifling cage of possessiveness, gaslighting, and emotional manipulation. As Vikram’s love transforms into obsession, Bhooma must decide whether to endure the suffocation or reclaim her voice.
A Performance-Driven Narrative
If there is a singular reason to watch The Girlfriend, it is undoubtedly Rashmika Mandanna. Shedding the larger-than-life persona of her recent blockbusters, she slips into the skin of Bhooma with remarkable restraint. This is a role that demands internalisation rather than explosion. Rashmika conveys the erosion of her character’s self-esteem through micro-expressions—a averted gaze, a hesitant shoulder slump, and a smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes. Her transformation from a submissive “good girl” to a woman recognizing her own shackles is the film’s strongest asset.
Matching her intensity is Dheekshith Shetty (known for Dasara), who plays Vikram not as a cartoon villain, but as a terrifyingly realistic depiction of modern entitlement. He captures the specific nuance of a partner who disguises control as “care.” His performance is unsettling precisely because he oscillates between charm and menace so fluidly, making the gaslighting believable.
Anu Emmanuel, returning to the screen as Durga, serves as an interesting foil to Bhooma—confident and self-assured—though her character arc suffers from contradictory writing. Rohini Molleti, in a brief but powerful cameo as Vikram’s mother, delivers a masterclass in silent acting, providing a crucial piece of the psychological puzzle regarding Vikram’s behavior.
Direction and Writing: The Core Issue
While the performances elevate the material, the film falters significantly in its writing and execution. Rahul Ravindran, who showed great promise with Chi La Sow, seems to struggle here with the balance between storytelling and social commentary.
The “Message” Overpowering the Medium The film tackles vital themes: patriarchy, the “mother syndrome” (where men expect partners to mother them), and the subtlety of emotional abuse. However, the script often violates the “show, don’t tell” rule. Instead of letting the audience feel the toxicity organically, the dialogue frequently descends into preachy exposition. Characters explicitly use therapy-speak like “possessiveness” and “controlling,” turning scenes into lectures rather than dramatic engagements.
Technical Aspects
Visually, The Girlfriend has moments of brilliance. Cinematographer Krishnan Vasant uses tight frames and lighting to create a sense of claustrophobia that mirrors Bhooma’s internal state. Visual metaphors—such as Bhooma being ensnared by tree roots or the stifling atmosphere of a small bathroom—are employed effectively, though sometimes they border on being too on-the-nose.
The musical score by Hesham Abdul Wahab is a mixed bag. While the background score by Prashanth R Vihari effectively ramps up the tension in the thriller-adjacent portions of the second half, the songs themselves are pleasant but largely forgettable. They do not drive the narrative forward as effectively as one might hope in a romantic drama.
The Verdict
The Girlfriend is a film that is easier to respect for its politics than to enjoy as a piece of cinema. It is a brave attempt to hold a mirror up to the normalized toxicity in romantic relationships, challenging the “Kabir Singh” archetype of the possessive lover. It asks men to question their entitlement and women to question their boundaries.
However, noble intentions do not automatically make a great film. The sluggish pacing, the heavy-handed didacticism, and a predictable trajectory prevent it from becoming the poignant drama it aspires to be. It is a “clinical study” of a relationship rather than an emotional journey.
Watch it for: Rashmika Mandanna’s nuanced performance and the important conversation it attempts to start about consent and boundaries. Skip it if: You prefer subtle storytelling and are easily bored by slow-burn dramas that reiterate the same point repeatedly.
CINEMA SPICE RATING: ★★½ (2.5/5)
