Vikas Bahl it seems wants to establish himself as a versatile director. His first two outings(Chillar Party and Queen) were totally different from each other, apart from being really brilliant films. Shaandaar is different from his other flicks alright, but it’s far from being brilliant. Bahl’s scenes are seen falling flat most of the time, and he isn’t even able to whip out something to keep us captivated during the boring parts.
He however succeeds in bringing out the best from his actors. He and the ever so impressive Anil Mehta deserve credit for capturing some jaw dropping locations as well. The film would have received a lot of help if some of its songs and unneeded sequences were chopped off, especially the cheesy bits like the Karan Johar cameo and the long and winding scene in which everyone gets accidentally drugged. The animated bits are uninspired and yet another attempt by Bahl to capture the fairy tale vibe