DNA India praises Alia’s magnetic, possibly career best performance and an emotionally involving narrative that makes audiences empathize with and cheer for Gangubai.

Hindustan Times finds Alia superlative and the first half poetic and tragic, but questions the increasingly goddess like treatment of Gangubai.

Koimoi celebrates Alia’s career-best work, powerful dialogue and Bhansali’s emotional craftsmanship, with only some relationships receiving less development than deserved.

BollywoodLife praises Alia’s forceful performance and Bhansali’s opulent, emotionally charged staging, calling it a powerful drama shaped by his unmistakable cinematic style.

Bollywood Hungama calls it a powerful saga with Alia’s career best performance and terrific moments, despite a weak romance, pacing dips and disappointing music.

News18 praises Alia’s brilliant transformation, striking visuals and ensemble, but finds the middle uneven, overlong and too worshipful of its central character.

Filmibeat says Alia wins hearts and the craftsmanship impresses, but lazy writing and an increasingly disengaging screenplay undermine the fascinating source material.

The Times of India praises Alia’s transformation, production design and visual treatment, while noting that major life chapters and supporting characters remain underexplored.

India TV News praises Alia and the compassionate challenge to society’s hypocrisy toward sex workers, but finds the execution uneven and insufficiently penetrating.

India Today applauds Alia’s risk taking performance, dialogues and supporting cast, but finds the first half uneven and her accent occasionally inconsistent.