Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s third directorial venture is his best till date. Atleast, I think so. I don’t know about others. Well...lets talk about the Paro-meets-Chandramukhi scene first. It was purely a vision of the director. In the novel (of the same name by Saratchandra Chattapaddhay), there was no such scene. Film-critics ripped this movie apart because of this single scene. The fact is that cinematic liberties may be taken and the director wasn’t wrong in filming that particular scene. It went on to bag the "best scene of the year award" at the filmfare awards ceremony that year!
Mr. Bhansali’s "Devdas" had the king Khan at his very best. According to me, it is his finest performance so far. He was mindblowing as the self-destructive, confused and lonely Devdas. Comparisons with Dilip Kumar’s act in the other classic of the same name (directed by Bimal Roy) were evident. I’ll say both were equally good. Aishwarya as Parvati/Paro was good but she was clearly overshadowed by Madhuri’s terrific performance as the courtesan, Chandramukhi who is madly in love with the drunkard Devdas.
She is known to be a very good dancer. Here, she is at her classical best as far as her dance is concerned. Jackie Shroff as Chunilal is okay, if not good. The direction is really good. The music of the film may reach out to a niche audience because it is completely classical. The movie also boasts of a stunning cinematography and art direction. Take a bow, Mr. Bhansali. You made a classic! Truly a visual treat.