With shades of the mythological story of Savitri and Satyavan — where a doting wife outwits the god of death Yama and saves her husband — in its plotline, Abhinay Deo’s Savi is an action thriller revolving around a homemaker’s resolve to rescue her husband.

While Savi neither has the wacky energy of Deo’s 2011 cult film Delhi Belly or the pace of the TV series 24 which he co-directed, it makes up for it to some extent through its exploration of familial love and resilience in the face of adversity.

The story follows Savitri/Savi Sachdev (Divya Khossla), a homemaker from Liverpool whose happy marital life falls apart when her husband Nakul (Harshvardhan Rane), an employee at a construction company, is accused of murdering his boss and is thrown into prison.

Unwavering in her faith in Nakul’s innocence, Savitri comes up with an audacious plan to get him out of jail. She seeks out Joydeep Paul (Anil Kapoor), an author and ex-convict who helps her with his expertise in elaborate disguises. The Liverpool police get a whiff of their jailbreak plan from clues at Savi’s home, leading to a high-stakes cat-and-mouse chase. But the film’s pacing is a major drawback — it progresses slowly and the drawn-out climax tests your patience.

Screenplay writers Parveez Sheikh and Aseem Arora keep the focus on Savi all through, making it more about her struggles and triumphs than turning her into a gun-toting action heroine. The role showcases Divya Khossla, who has mostly featured in romcoms until now, in a new light and she embraces the challenge with a raw and powerful portrayal of a wife willing to go to any length for her husband.

As the intriguing Joydeep Paul, Anil Kapoor adds value to the story. His protective nature towards Savi is evident in the way he always remains by her side, offering her emotional support and creating a bond of friendship. Harshvardhan Rane turns in a decent act as Nakul but the screenplay doesn’t have much for him.