MUMBAI: It’s rare to see an actor step so far into a character that you stop noticing the performer altogether. In Haq, Yami Gautam Dhar does exactly that. Playing Shazia Bano, a fictionalised version of Shah Bano, Yami gives what can only be called the finest performance of her career. This isn’t just another strong turn from an actress known for choosing brave scripts; it’s the moment where her craft, conviction, and calm intensity come together in perfect sync.
At the film’s Mumbai premiere, even the paparazzi couldn’t hold back their admiration. A video that quickly went viral showed photographers cheering for Yami on the red carpet, chanting “Agle saal milenge National Award pe!”. It’s rare to see such appreciation but in Yami’s case, the applause feels inevitable.
A user wrote, “Yami deserves National award for this performance,” and another wrote, “I hope and pray that you get a #NationalAward for #Haq! You were outstanding @yamigautam!” A comment read, “Just give @yamigautam the National Award for #Haq. Too good, career best performance,” and another wrote, “Please give @yamigautam the national award already! #Haq.” A user wrote, “From first scene to last scene, Yami you are just brilliant in the film! Want to give you a tight hug for this performance. Always a big admirer of your work. This performance will fetch you a National Award. Let’s manifest!”
A comment read, “If there is no National Award for #YamiGautam for #HAQ, then National Awards need to be shut for good. It is coming. IT HAS TO!” and another read, “Every frame of #Haq proves why #YamiGautam is class apart. No hype, just pure talent and conviction. She’s ruling Indian cinema with back-to-back award-winning performances. She deserves a prestigious National Award next year!!”
From her very first scene, Yami inhabits Shazia with a lived-in quality. The role demands both restraint and fire and Yami navigates that beautifully. It’s a role that could easily have been written in black and white, but Yami paints it in layered greys.
For those who’ve followed her journey, this performance feels like a natural culmination. From Vicky Donor to Uri, Bala to Article 370, Yami has steadily carved a space for herself as one of Hindi cinema’s most dependable performers and is someone who rarely chases noise but always commands attention. But Haq pushes her to a different league altogether. There’s a moral and emotional gravity here that we haven’t seen from her before. She doesn’t just act the part; she bears it.
Many have drawn comparisons between Yami’s Shazia and the kind of roles Shabana Azmi once embodied, women caught between personal faith and public justice, between duty and rebellion. The comparison isn’t far-fetched. Like Shabana, Yami plays Shazia with dignity and steel, balancing vulnerability with quiet fury. She’s the emotional spine of the film, and without her, Haq wouldn’t hold half its power. Reviewers have lauded her work as her finest till date. A review rightly notes, "The performances are all solid. As Shazia Bano, the woman hurt and angered by her husband’s betrayal, yet someone who holds on to the fraying shreds of her dignity, Yami Gautam Dhar is excellent, keeping flashy histrionics in check even in the mandatory climactic monologue..."
It’s almost ironic that Yami was recently in the news for being overlooked during award season for Article 370. If Haq doesn’t change that, it would be nothing short of unjust. This is the kind of performance that deserves every recognition coming its way for its technical brilliance and for the courage and clarity with which Yami approaches her craft.
With Haq, Yami Gautam Dhar has arrived at that rare point in an actor’s career where talent meets purpose. She has nothing left to prove, only more to explore. If there was ever any doubt about her place among India’s finest actors, Haq ends that conversation once and for all.
Produced by Junglee Pictures, Baweja Studios, and Insomnia Films, helmed by Suparn S Varma and headlined by Yami Gautam Dhar and Emraan Hashmi, Haq is running in theatres.
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