Zoo, directed by Haraamkhor director Shlok Sharma, is a unique one of its kind Hindi film because it’s completely shot on an iPhone! But not once a layman would understand that the film isn’t filmed on a conventional movie camera. The film consists of three tracks, all set in Mumbai, with certain characters featuring in more than one story. This 95 minute film takes a while to set the mood but once it’s done, there’s no looking back. The emotions, drama, conflict and humour all come together very well. Also praiseworthy is the way the film culminates. Shashank Arora is quite nice and good to see him doing something different this time! His performance is sure to touch viewers! Shweta Tripathi as always rocks and just like Shashank, even she steps into a new avatar and surprises! A particular sequence wherein she’s begging for drugs is sure to be remembered for a long time! Rahul Kumar (Messi), best remembered for the role of Millimeter in 3 Idiots, is amazing and he’s a powerhouse of talent! And the review would be incomplete without the mention of the rappers in the film - Prince Daniel and Yogesh Kurme. They are outstanding and they brought the house down with their obscene rap lyrics! All in all, a fine job by Shlok and now eagerly waiting for his next!

My rating - *** ½ out of 5!

Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 12, 2017)

It was a frustrating time for filmmaker Shlok Sharma and his leading actress, Shweta Tripathi, when their debut film Haraamkhor struggled to get a release date for four years. While Masaan went on to give Shweta’s her first acting credit in 2015, Haraamkhor was mired in controversies owing to its subject and struggled to find buyers. That’s when Shlok pitched another concept to the actress and the two rolled with India’s first feature film to be shot on an iPhone, Zoo.

Now, backed by producers Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane, the film is gearing up for its world premiere this October at the upcoming edition of the Busan International Film Festival. A dark, urban take on people trapped inside metaphorical cages, it has Shweta in the role of a drug-addled teen, Misha Mehta, who is constantly fighting her inner demons. Brahman Naman-actor Shashank Arora features as her drug dealer, the only person she interacts with regularly. “The film was shot over 30 days in Mumbai. To look like an addict, I gave up sugar and carbs for three months. I didn’t want people to see Shweta in the character at all,” the actress recalls, adding that she also lived in the room that features in the film. “Misha never leaves her room as she is spiralling down the rabbit hole of guilt. To get into character, I restricted myself to the same room. My urban avatar in Zoo is a far cry from the poetry-loving Shaalu Gupta of Masaan,” Shweta adds.

The 32-year-old actress points out that it is great to work with makers who are steadfast in their support to troubled films, like Guneet Monga stood by Haraamkhor. “Anurag and Vikram watched Zoo together and decided to back it. It brings a sense of validation when established makers back your film. Experimental cinema needs all the support it can get,” Shweta explains, pointing out that even though she’s moved on, Haraamkhor is still garnering accolades on the festival circuit. It will be screened at the South Asian Film Festival in Paris next month. “The festival feathers in the credits of your film are the greatest satisfaction,” she says.

Signing off on a philosophical note, the pint-sized actress says that Zoo holds the mirror to modern urban relationships in the age of social media, when youngsters are weaving their own reality and getting trapped in it too. “Society and family have a big role to play in who teenagers like Misha become. Everyone seems to be pulling each other down. We’re trying to tell an honest story about the increasing disconnect with the real world,” she says.

Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 30, 2016)

Anurag Kashyap and director Shlok Sharma have come together to produce a film titled Zoo which has been shot entirely with an iphone 6s-plus. Filmed in Mumbai earlier this year, it features Masaan actress Shweta Tripathi as a drug addict and Misha Mehta who is involved in an accident.

It propagates the idea that while most of us think that we are safe and free, our minds are trapped by what’s happening in our daily lives.

Shweta confirmed the news to Mirror, saying, “Anurag has been the messiah of good cinema, he is always pushing us to do better. When we came up with this idea, his was the first door that we knocked on and Shlok and Anurag instantly came together to produce the film.”

Sharing the experience of shooting with a phone rather than a regular camera, the 31-year-old actress says that filming is more intimate with the former as there are no big cameras and attendants hovering around.

“The cellphone is so small that you can get lost in a scene and forget that there is someone capturing you. The challenge was that these were one-take scenes so we couldn’t afford to mess up. It was like a theatre exercise where we’d rehearse a scene, then check how it flowed on camera.”