Sona Spa: Movie Review

“Hum neend ka business karte hai, Hum neend ka business karte hai” you are treated to this brilliant background score as soon as you enter the theater. After watching a trailer that was nothing short of being eerie and lewd, you find yourself fervently hoping Sona Spa doesn’t turn out to be such a disaster. However, your worst fears come true minutes into the film which is nothing close to the psychological-thriller it marketed itself to be.

At Sona Spa, a client is allotted a sleep worker who sleeps for them, so while you continue with your routine, your sleep worker sleeps for you and you feel rejuvenated? Sounds very idyllic right for all those who think sleeping is a waste of one’s precious time… Not really, there’s a catch – apart from sleeping for you, the sleep-worker can also see your dreams!



Rucha (Shruti Vyas) and Ritu (Aahana Kumrah) both join Sona Spa in the hope of sleeping for their loved ones! Clearly, they were bitten by mad dogs to want to forsake their sanity but that’s besides the point! Rucha wants to sleep for her wealthy father who doesn’t get sleep since her mother’s death and Ritu wants to sleep for her sister who’s equally traumatized after her mother and brother’s death. Rucha’s client includes Mr. Choksi (Romi Jaispal), a rich man who doesn’t get sleep while Ritu’s client is an undercover cop.

Before you know it, you’re subjected to close-up shots of Mr. Choksi’s sexual fantasies, his illicit extramarital affairs and violent scenes involving our dear undercover cop. Post the interval, the two have metamorphosed all, courtesy their sleep workers sleeping for them! There’s no denying that lack of sleep is detrimental to our health but it transforming someone is a little too hard to digest!

Some of the fundamental problem areas with Sona Spa is that it claims to deal with the issue of sleep deprivation but it’s merely selling the concept of sleep workers to people. Also, dreams are very personal, our repressed feelings, subliminal perceptions, thoughts, habits, hidden phobias and desires are symbolically expressed in our dreams. Why then would a layman want to hire a sleep worker who will have access to their dreams?

As far as the film’s performances are concerned, Naseeruddin Shah As Baba Dayanand hardly has any role, Aahana Kumrah is an actress who can emote and tries to do justice to her role. Nivedita Bhattacharya as Minakshi has been given a few decent dialogues which benefits her. The cinematography is horrendous and contains several shots being cut at odd angles. The film’s dialogues are definitely entertaining provided you’re in an inebriated state!

For all those who expected an offbeat film, sorry folks, the film is far from even being a thriller and is merely a sleaze fest. After hearing of the play’s success one hoped the film would repeat history but maybe not.

Verdict: Ignorance is indeed bliss, you’re missing out on nothing extraordinary!

Kanika Rajani