In his two-decade long career as a director, Sanjay Leela Bhansali has made it quite apparent that he has a weakness for tales centering on forbidden and failed love. His most recent film, audiences have been told, is one that he has wanted to make for the last 12 years. It is the story of star-crossed lovers - Peshwa Bajirao I ( Ranveer Singh) and Mastani ( Deepika Padukone) , the half-Rajput and half-Muslim beauty from Bundelkhand. You understand why Bhansali never quite gave up on his dream project. It gives him the perfect excuse to stage another tragic love story against a grand, lush backdrop with graceful, bejeweled women, gorgeous costumes and beautifully choreographed songs.
But what sets this doomed romance apart from his last romantic tragedy, Goliyon Kis Raasleela Ramleela, is the presence of another woman in Kashibai ( Priyanka Chopra) , Peshwa Bajirao’s wife. The film may be called Bajirao Mastani but it is Kashibai who makes a formidable impression in Bhansali’s version of the historical tale. She isn’t the kinds to forgive her husband’s betrayal and thankfully isn’t reduced to a bitter, vengeful wife. Credit goes to Chopra who further humanizes the character, making audiences feel Kashibai’s loss and anguish. The scenes between Singh and Chopra - first as the happy couple and then estranged - are dramatically the most enriching bits in the film. One misses that in the encounters with Bajirao and Mastani which are passionate and tearful but still lack the potency that should make viewers root for them.
But perhaps that isn’t Bhansali’s intention. In the first half he pays tribute to Mughal-e-Azam with two songs, Mohe Rang Do Lal and Deewani Mastani. He draws parallel between Radha and Mastani, who was never married to the man with whom she is remembered. He is eager to show Kashibai’s plight and Bajirao’s struggle to balance between loyalty for the kingdom, responsibility as a ruler and unwavering love for Mastani. It is Mastani who is ill-serviced in Prakash Kapadia’s screenplay. Viewers get little sense of the woman other than a Juliet adept in sword fighting. This warrior side all but disappears in the second half and Mastani is the consort who is ostracized by the Marathas and futilely hopes to win the approval of Radhabai ( Tanvi Azmi) , Bajirao’s mother, and Chimaji ( Vaibhav Tatwadi) , his brother. Bhansali is keen to highlight the religious divide which is the bane of Bajirao and Mastani’s romance and he accomplishes it without the melodrama. Sadly excessive theatrics seep into the climax where Bhansali much like Bajirao loses control stretching the film for needless visual splendour.