When the Rajshri brand of cinema is analyzed, it is quite clearly that their focus is on family bonds, marriages, and relationships. No doubt, after a series of successful films (MAINE PYAR KIYA, HUM AAPKE HAIN KAUN, HUM SAATH SAATH HAI), the Barjatyas got monotonous and suffered with commonplace scripting (MAIN PREM KI DEEWANI HOON, UFF KYA JAADOO MOHABBAT HAI). With VIVAAH, the Barjatyas break that jinx and return to form big time. VIVAAH is not merely a story about family bonds, etc. It is much more. It is an emotional journey from engagement to marriage. And yes, that means a lot, since the Bollywood audiences have not witnessed such a concept too much on a commercial level.
VIVAAH is a movie that can be watched by anyone and everyone, from the youngest child in the family to the oldest member of the family. That is so because obviously, the Barjatyas incorporate the family theme in all their movies. But as said before, VIVAAH is not just about the coming together of two families. It manily focuses on how a boy called Prem (Shahid Kapoor) comes from Delhi to marry Poonam (Amrita Rao), a girl from Madhupur. While Poonam is a lower middle class girl raised by her loving uncle (Alok Nath), Prem is a hardworking and mannered youngster who hails from one of Delhi’s most prestigious families. Nonetheless, the two families agree upon their engagement and the two strangers travel the emotional journey, come closer to each other, and eventually fall in love with each other. One obstacle their love has to overcome is Poonam’s non-consenting aunt (Seema Biswas) and another one is that of nature itself.
In its essence, VIVAAH appears to be like any other film by Barjatyas where the lovers overcome various oppositions. But VIVAAH comes at a time where Bollywood needs a film that reminds the audiences about the realities of life, and that too in the most commercial of ways. Many critics predicted that VIVAAH would fail since it came too late in the day. But on the contrary, VIVAAH worked big time perhaps thanks to this very timing.
Nonetheless, I am a believer that a good movie usually needs no timing to create an impact. Hence, VIVAAH’s mainstay lies in its screenplay itself, which makes the journey very entertaining and likeable, despite of the fact that the typical Barjatya label makes its same old prominence felt throughout. Simply put, VIVAAH is a movie that does retain some of Rajshri’s age-old elements such family unions and a conservative view of relationships. Yet, at the same time, it manages to add that contemporary finish that makes it likeable for today’s youthful audiences as well. To put it more shortly, VIVAAH is very simple, yet extremely appealing.
Technically, VIVAAH is a mixed bag. The music is very obviously mediocre, with "Mujhe Haq Hai" and "Kuch Baatein Ho Chuki Hain" being the only passable numbers. Also, the songs disturb the otherwise fluid screenplay quite often. The cinematography is below par as the frames are the culprits that end up giving the movie an outdated visual. There are no locales no talk about since the movie is shot mostly in the indoors, so that can be a disappointment for some. To more than make up for these minor shortcomings though, there are powerful dialogues, a hard-hitting climax, and brilliant performances.
Shahid Kapoor is simply brilliant. After SHIKHAR, this is yet another mature performance from him. This time, the young actor seems to have arrived completely though. His performance in the emotional scenes, especially in the climax, outline his tremendous growth as an actor. Amrita Rao excels in a role tailor made for a simply adorable girl like her. Ms. Rao bounces back after a hiatus to prove that she is here to stay. She also proves that she does not need to much of a make up to look attractive, because she already is. The lead couple has been directed with amazing quality by Sooraj Barjatya, who ends up extracting a great chemistry from them for the first time in so long. The supporting cast, headed by Anupam Kher and Alok Nath, offers great support.
Overall, VIVAAH seems to be the movie of the season, as it comes at a time where gadgets and an unrealistic use of technology (DON, DHOOM 2) are unjustly dominating the Hindi cinema. VIVAAH stays simple and realistic, and yet offers bundles of entertainment and emotion to be appreciated by the great majority. Today, when it was officially declared as an all-India hit and a major success in the the International Market too (UK), I felt it was the right time to congratulate Rajshri with this review. Thumbs up Sooraj!