The movie Yeh Zindagi Ka Safar has flaws. It begins with a few awkwardly worded opening scenes. However, just before we exclaim, “Oops, wrong number!” It is held by Tanuja Chandra.

The identity of the heroine Serena (Ameesha Patel) is suddenly in jeopardy. Serena learns she is not the daughter of her father. She travels to Ooty to see her real mother (Nafisa Ali, still stunning but cut off from the major film industry) after a compelling, if sometimes sterile, search starts.

We are drawn into Serena’s anguished history and present as her horrifying beginnings are disclosed.

However, her first three films, Yeh Zindagi Ka Safar, Sangharsh, which was imperfect but entertaining, and the superb Dushman, did not do well at the box office. The films of Tanuja Chandra have a chic, socially conscious flair. Despite its grim exterior, the storyline is continuously exploring the urban diaspora for reasons to make life worthwhile.

Yeh Zindagi… tackles a harsh subject—rape and illegitimate motherhood—just like her first two movies. In an attempt to make the final product box office-friendly, Tanuja somewhat sanitizes and dilutes the topic. The diffusive lens does little to improve the film’s inherent qualities, but it helps minimize the suffering of the injured womb.

Thankfully, the songs and main actor do not stand out like sore fingers, despite the fact that this is a serious topic geared at women. The narrative is logically interwoven with Daboo Malik’s gentle songs. Thank God, there aren’t any song breaks in this movie! Rather, the picture is propelled ahead by the well-written tunes.

The narrative has a lively joie de vivre thanks to Jimmy Shergill’s portrayal of the arrogant author. Shergil’s love scenes make us think of the early Rishi Kapoor. He has definitely changed since his time in Mohabbatein. Shergil’s unwavering support for the female lead makes us think of Raj Kiran from Mahesh Bhatt’s Arth and Aman Verma from Tanuja’s Sangharsh.

Ameesha plays a crucial part in Yeh Zindagi Ka Safar, much like Kajol in Tanuja Chandra’s Dushman and Preity Zinta in Sangharsh. Her portrayal of the girl searching for her biological identity veers between unsatisfactory drama and stylish beauty. Amisha just doesn’t measure up in the emotionally charged scenes, as when her character is abandoned by her mother or when she attacks her mother’s rapist like a neo-Jhansi Ki Rani.

The megalomaniacal officer and self-appointed nation-cleaner, played by theater actor Ehsaan Khan, is alarmingly malevolent, much like the larger-than-life villains that Ashutosh Rana portrayed in Tanuja Chandra’s previous two films. Tanuja Chandra seems to have a terrible fascination with the negative aspects of life, especially for a female director. With the help of Manoj Gupta’s cinematography, Gappa Chakraborty’s artwork, and Daboo Malik’s music, Tanuja’s film never becomes difficult, even as the courageous heroine starts to break through the toxic caucus that is eroding our societal structure.

Tanuja deserves praise for addressing sensitive subjects including rape and illegitimacy, journalistic ethics, and the persecution of Christian minority groups by self-appointed neo-Nazis. Tanuja adds unnecessary fluids to the dish, sabotaging her own meaty scheme. It is hilariously out of character for Shergil and Patel to beat the evil police commissioner to a pulp in the climactic scene on a moving truck. It serves as a reminder of how far away even the most cautious traveler might go when they venture into the realm of movie.