Raanjhanaa is the ray of hope for Bollywood’s dying breed of love stories. No Aashiqui 2 was not one. Neither was YJHD. This one is a simple story but what brilliant treatment. This film will reinstate faith in content and acting and go on to be remembered for longer than anyone expected. Dhanush (playing Kundan) is no Khan level star. Nor was Sanjay Dutt when an unknown Rajkumar Hirani spinned magic with a low key but high on content Munna Bhai MBBS. You got my point, right?
Aanand L. Rai, the director, is just a film old but with this one, he is probably willing enough to prove that his sleeper hit a couple of years back (Tanu Weds Manu) was no fluke and definitely not the best of his work. So while he takes his work several notches higher than last time, he had Rahman’s music to raise the expectations for all as well and hence a lot more to prove this time around.
The director steers the complicated and emotional storyline with extreme finesse and tactfully leaves space for a lot of memorable moments, most of them humorous, combining them with the essence of the film’s additional character- The City of Banaras. You see the city in it’s truest colors and the dialogues add to the effect. Credit must goes to the writers, art directors and cinematographers for realizing the same and presenting it well.
A R Rahman’s score blends amazingly well with the screenplay. Tell me when was the last time you saw zero out six songs in a Bollywood love story being lip synched by either of the main leads? Yes, never. That is the sort of newness in treatment that this film achieves. Keeping the desi flavor intact, the realism has not been compromised. You so wish every love story to be so realistic.
The supporting actors are clearly the best thing in this film. You see brilliance of the ensemble cast wherever they get a chance to get into the frame. Such a pleasant fact that Bollywood has simply moved on from using make-do ’character artists’ and now chooses to pick each and every person mouthing even one dialogue with utmost care. A lot of people will easily relate with Kundan’s friends Murari (Mohd Zeeshan Ayyub)and Bindiya (Swara Bhaskar) and these characters will be remembered for long enough. Zeeshan, last seen in Jannat 2, can strongly remind you of a young Piyush Mishra.
Finding people applause the intermission point is such a rarity. Isn’t it? The first half stands out as probably the best you would have seen since 3 Idiots. Of course not as good as that at all but the pacey screenplay with so many entertaining sequences, nowhere compromising on the quality of the film’s basic premise is more than a treat to watch and a rarity of sorts these days.
Yes, Dhanush is the heart and soul of this film. This scripting has been done keeping well in mind a lot of miniscule detailing about him such as Dhanush’s Tamil inspired accent, his rustic looks and his charming antics. Hence, he misses no chance to steal the show from the word go. He is as natural as it gets, be it the 15 year old Banaras ke Ghat wala Kundan or the bearded, much more mature portrayal of a turmoil ridden face as the story progresses.
Sonam Kapoor has definitely improved but instead of giving her all the credit here, it’s better to commend the director for getting the work done. Abhay Deol is excellent in a perfectly suited role.
Raanjhanaa stands out for it’s intermittent humor, intertwined with the complex love story. The first half is exhilarating while the second half gets a little jittery at a few places including those where Sonam doesn’t emote fittingly. Well, if not for that, wouldn’t this just be one perfect film and perfection isn’t that often.
For the expectations you invest and the honesty which this film carries, much to the credit of Dhanush, it deserves a watch for sure. 4 stars.