The bald truth about hair

From egg to dung to the body fluids of a bull, Bala tries every quick fix (and quack mix) to cover the naked truth on his head. But his hair remains au naturel, in all its receding glory.

Kanpur’s hero finally loses his crown. Once a Shah Rukh Khan, Bala now finds himself in the Anupam Kher category. But he is determined to win every strand back.

‘Bala’ is another winner from the perennial powerhouse Ayushmann Khurrana.

From sporting a hat to plastering the top of his bathroom mirror to block unpleasant hairscapes, Khurrana does everything to deal with his bald reality. When nothing works, he crucifies dad Saurabh Shukla for his ‘ganja’ genes.

Employed as a marketing executive for a fairness cream, Khurrana embodies everything that is wrong with body-shaming India. Yami Gautam plays the perfect foil as his TikTok star lover (“Let’s make the suhaag raat video”).

Finally, it’s up to Bhumi Pednekar, Bala’s childhood friend and no-nonsense lawyer, to hold a mirror up to his truth.

A few grey patches are visible, but ‘Bala’ is healthy mane overall.