Tag Archives: Hindi

Bajirao Mastani

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Bajirao Mastani

Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s latest epic is another triumph for the set designers, costume makers, make-up artists and jewellers of whom there must have been legion. It’s not just visually spectacular either, with impressive performances from the main leads and a beautiful soundtrack and background score. In fact the story turns out to be the weakest link in an otherwise lavish spectacle since for an epic love story, the film is strangely lacking in romance. However the film still makes an impact and with strong female characters, glittering scenery and plenty of Ranveer Singh, it’s definitely well worth watching in the cinema if you can.

The opening scenes are imperially ornate and immediately set the scene for an epic tale of daring do and palace intrigue. Unfortunately there is subsequently rather less of the daring do, with few scenes of battle and the palace intrigue hinted at doesn’t come to anything either. Bajirao (Ranveer Singh) wins the post of Maratha Peshwar with some rather nifty archery, and immediately heads back to battle to continue the expansion of the Marathi kingdom. While out on campaign he comes to the aid of the King of Bundelkhand and after rescuing the kingdom from an army of invaders, Bajirao falls for the King’s daughter by his second Muslim wife, Mastani (Deepika Padukone).

Mastani is a warrior too and manages some impressive sword work herself, which is presumably why Bajirao falls for her. But what happens in Bundelkhand should stay in Bundelkhand and the trouble starts when Mastani follows Bajirao back to Pune, where Bajirao lives with his wife Kashibai (Priyanka Chopra) and his mother Radhabai (Tanvi Azmi). Radhabai is incensed that her family line should be polluted by a foreigner’s blood, particularly since Mastani is Muslim, and she deliberately humiliates Mastani at every opportunity. Radhabai is an interesting character with a little more depth that just a standard outraged matriarch and Tanvi Azmi is excellent as the embittered widow who feels she is fighting for her family’s honour. She is ably supported in her machinations by Bajirao’s younger brother Chimaji Appa (Vaibbhav Tatwawdi) and his eldest son with Kashibai, Nana (Ayush Tandon). Her outrage and vehement opposition to Mastani is perfectly vindictive and beautifully balanced by her warm relationship with Kashibai and her devotion to her son.

Ranveer Singh does a fantastic job as Bajirao to the extent that I don’t actually like his character much – impressive when I usually love every character he portrays. Here he is consumed by desire and mostly oblivious to the pain he causes others, making him too arrogant to be a completely likeable character. Bajirao is certainly a fearless warrior, but Ranveer gives him a compassionate side and also allows glimpses of insecurity through his relationship with Mastani.  However he doesn’t see the contempt with which his family views Mastani and seems oblivious to the threats against her life. He is more concerned with his role as Peshwar until he lets his desire for Mastani overcome his sense of duty and allows his obsession with her to rule his life. Ranveer shows little of the swagger and attitude from Kil Dil and Gunday, but transforms himself into an eighteenth century warrior with plenty of imperial remoteness and stately reserve, which may partly explain the lack of warmth in his relationships. Unfortunately Bhansali doesn’t show many battles, and in the few fight scenes Ranveer mainly sits on a horse and swings his curling sword, although he does manage a few good grimaces as he rides to battle. Maybe I watch too many SI films but I was disappointed at the lack of battle scenes and would have loved more action rather than the relatively bloodless clashes here.

As Mastani, Deepika is mesmerizing when she snarls her way through battle but she becomes flat and lifeless once she transforms into the love of Bajirao’s life, losing all her sparkle.  I find Bhansali’s depiction of Mastani in love as insipid and overly compliant. Where did all her passion go? There is definite chemistry between Ranveer and Deepika, but there appears to be little joy in the relationship and I’m not sure that smouldering looks and declarations of’ acceptance’ are enough to explain why Mastani submits to the many indignities heaped on her admittedly capable shoulders. A love that is strong enough to withstand such determined and murderous opposition should be grand, overwhelming and all-encompassing, but that just doesn’t come across in the relationship between Bajirao and Mastani, and that is the most disappointing aspect of the film.

The best of the main leads is undoubtedly Priyanka Chopra as Bajirao’s first wife. She has the passion and joy in her relationship with Bajirao that is lacking in his relationship with Mastani and gets to show all her rage and humiliation when she discovers Bajirao’s infidelity. Priyanka is brilliant here in a perfectly nuanced performance that gives her the opportunity to show passion, despair, hate and compassion and she gets it right every time. Kashibai is the more interesting character and with grace and beauty Priyanka makes the most of the opportunity given to her in a faultless depiction of a betrayed wife.  She gets to dance too, and if Pinga doesn’t quite reach the choreographic heights of Dola Re Dola, Priyanka and Deepika are both beautiful dancers and look absolutely stunning too.

I didn’t know the story of the warrior Bajirao and his second wife Mastani before watching the film, and I’m not sure that I know much more about them afterwards either.  Bhansali takes moments from Bajirao’s life (although for a film about a great martial leader there are few glimpses of this side of his character) and intersperses them with behind the scenes action in his household, but the narrative jumps hours, days and then years without any clear indication, resulting in a disjointed timeline. Each scene is individually good, but doesn’t always totally gel with the preceding or subsequent action, while the lack of passion and joy in the relationship between Bajirao and Mastani is disappointing. However the opulent sets and overall grandeur of Bajirao Mastani are of the overall high quality expected from Sanjay Leela Bhansali and ensure that the film is worth watching even if it’s not as engaging as I would have liked. I’d recommend watching for the visual impact and for the excellent performances from all the cast, especially Ranveer and Priyanka.

Dilwale

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Dilwale_Poster

Kaali (Sharukh) and Meera (Kajol) fall in love. Kaali tells Meera he is a gangster, son of don Randhir (Vinod Khanna). Meera tells Kaali she is an artist and they do lots of picturesque and cutesy romancing. But Kaali finds out there is more to Meera than being a simple artist. Eventually they part and go their own ways. Fifteen years later, Veer (Varun Dhawan) meets Ishita (Kriti Sanon) and they fall in love. Veer is Kaali’s little brother, although Kaali now calls himself Raj and is a simple mechanic and car modifier. Ishu’s big sister? Yeah. Will Veer and Ishu ever get together in the face of such strong family opposition? And why did neither Kaali nor Meera ever move on and marry someone else?

My love for Shahrukh goes way, way back, and I was not disappointed at all by him in Dilwale. I’ve always liked him most in roles where he is not too sugary sweet. I particularly liked the moments when, as Raj, he let the calculating menace of Kaali show through. He seemed completely at home in his character’s skin without looking like he’d phoned this one in. The fight scenes showed Kaali as a relentless and brutal machine. Careful angles and editing made it seem as though Shahrukh was doing all his own work in the action sequences so there was no break in the dramatic tension. I’m sure his stunt guy was working overtime but I think they’ve done a great job when it is hard to pick who is who.

His stylist also did a great job of making the 15 year gap between timelines seem believable. Plus I enjoyed the double layered linen shirts, sometimes matching or in a monochrome mix, and always with a hint of cleavage. Well done, that person.

And after Janam Janam, all I can say is “move over Mr Darcy”. (Plus, as far as I know, Colin Firth has not fixed a VW Beetle in the rain while dancing and wearing his Mr Darcy puffy shirt.)

Like Kaali there is more to Meera than meets the eye, and Kajol is fantastic. She looks great and gives Meera a tough femininity that really works. Of course she has amazing chemistry with Shahrukh, and I think the film should have concentrated on their story. Kaali and Meera were like Romeo and Juliet who had survived and moved on in life, if not emotionally. I was more interested in what they had been up to since they last met, how they went legit, and what would happen next, than I was in Veer and Ishu’s sincere puppy love. One thing that I really liked is that the women drive the pace of developments in their relationships. Raj/Kaali told Meera she had got him all wrong. She didn’t budge just because he looked sad (and hot), but when she was ready she investigated further and she listened to the evidence.

Varun is pleasant, can dance, is good in action, but his dialogue delivery was odd. It sounded Shatneresque. Mumbled! And! Like! He! Spoke! With! An! Exclamation! He seemed to be pushing to make his action bigger, but instead it looked like his timing was off. His best moments were one on one with Shahrukh as the brothers dealt with the rocky road to true love. In one scene they are laughing through tears and it was genuinely touching, and then later a grim looking scene turned to sheepish laughter. I’d like Varun to do more action centred roles as I think he’d be great in that genre.

Kriti Sanon seems to be eminently qualified to be a romantic lead by virtue of not wearing much. Her acting is not offensively bad, but like Varun her shortcomings were all the more evident for the contrast. She fares better in scenes with either Shahrukh or Kajol as maybe she had something more to work off where Varun was a bit patchy.

Vinod Khanna and Kabir Bedi played Kaali and Meera’s respective fathers. They were charming and pragmatic, loving their families and hating their enemies with equal vigour. The stuff revenge sagas are made of.

Dilwale-flash cars

Shetty’s taste is hit and miss for me. The audience I saw this with was in stitches at the excruciating wordplay from Oscar (Sanjay Mishra). I loved the montage of lies that Anwar (Pankaj Tripathi) and Shakti (Mukesh Tiwari) spun, using snippets from what was on TV, to cover up Raj’s past. Veer cheekily does the SRK arms flung wide and lean when he needs help, channelling his inner filmi hero, and knowing that pose never ever fails. But when Mani (Johnny Lever) turned up in a fro, lungi, and mesh vest, masquerading as a South Indian thug I couldn’t understand why Shetty thought it was OK in Dilwale when he’d largely avoided such nonsense in Chennai Express. Boman Irani has settled comfortably into a half-arsed overacting groove that belies his abilities. There are lots of little references to DDLJ and other films from Love, Actually to Dude, Where’s My Car, and some laugh out loud lines so it pays to pay attention.

I was dying to see Gerua. I’ve recently been to Iceland and had visited several of the locations, not knowing Dilwale had been shooting there earlier in the year. I can assure you that the countryside really is THAT spectacular. Janam Janam is lush and full of longing, and showcased Kajol and Shahrukh’s chemistry with some age appropriate choreo. Varun got the best intro with the colourful Manma Emotion Jaage. Tukur Tukur plays over the end credits so if your audience is as annoying as mine was, you’ll probably just see a line of people’s butts shuffle past! The difference in style between Kajol and Shahrukh and Kriti and Varun is really evident as the youngsters act at the camera while the established stars know exactly where the camera is, but also know it will find them so they just do their thing.

This is definitely a good bet for the SRK or Kajol fans, but for others maybe not so much. I do think Dilwale delivers on the promise of being (fairly) entertaining, gorgeous to look at, and with loads of energy, but it falters when the film moves away from Raj and Meera. One I’d watch again on DVD and make judicious use of the fast forward button!

Pagla Kahin Ka (1970)

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Pagla Kahin Ka poster

I was supposed to be posting a review of a Jayalalitha film but I feel she has had quite enough publicity about now, and I shan’t add to it. Then I thought I would swap in something more upbeat as the world has been quite a trying place, but I remembered Pagla Kahin Ka. It has the perfect 70s cast, some great songs, and Shakti Samanta at the helm. But it’s a mostly sad story about love, friendship, and loss. I discovered this via the excellent Memsaab, and if you follow that link to her review you will also find a link to a subtitled download of the film.

Sujit (Shammi) and Shyam (Prem Chopra) are in a hotel nightclub band, and Jenny (Helen) is their featured artiste. Sujit and Jenny are madly in love and building plans for their future. Sujit proposes but Jenny is reluctant due to their different status. There are also rumours that Sujit is mad but Jenny doesn’t see his wildness as a problem.

Hotel boss Max (K.N Singh) is less enthusiastic about their union as he will lose his eyecandy and probably the associated income. Max and Shyam come to blows and Max is killed. Sujit takes the blame and pleads insanity, his sad past going a long way to convincing the judge despite his useless lawyer (Bhram Bardwaj). He goes to the asylum, leaving Shyam who is secretly in love with Jenny.

The asylum is full to the brim with overacting extras that make the place seem like a true Bedlam. Sujit is genuinely depressed and worried by his incarceration and his memories of his father who was committed following a breakdown. But that isn’t enough as he is meant to be an insane murderer and Shammi (over)indulges in some of his “crazy” acting. Shalu suspects he is faking and takes his case on.

Shalu asks him what would happen if Jenny had forgotten him. Oh the foreshadowing…

Meanwhile Shyam seems to be keeping things from Jenny and trying to make her doubt Sujit, and also keeping Sujit isolated. Things come to an emotional crescendo when Shalu hints at her feelings for Sujit, envying Jenny her love, at the same time Jenni is being raped by Shyam who has had enough of waiting. As if Prem Chopra was ever going to play a wholeheartedly good friend! Poor Sujit. He only has two real friends, and now things can never be the same.

Sujit’s release coincides with Shyam and Jenny’s wedding. Jenny looks very pretty and utterly miserable and I was pleased to see the movie gives the “marry your rapist” solution the side eye. At the wedding reception Madhumati dances a love triangle themed song in a very Helen-y outfit. And Sujit, clueless about why or how or even what but still wishing his dearest friends happiness, has a multi instrumental breakdown.

Now genuinely losing it, he is unable to process the shock and betrayal he feels at losing the friendship and loyalty that had been his foundation. Shalu sees the shocking difference in Sujit this time and immediately grasps that something devastating has happened. The other inmates welcome him back, some gently chiding him and some seeing his return from a cruel and inhospitable world as inevitable. It’s a nice change of tone from the more comedic first stint and Shammi plays it beautifully. He is heartbreaking as Sujit tries but fails to grapple with the facts, knowing there is something seriously awry but unable to process it or do anything to help himself.

Jenny visits Shalu and tells her the truth, hoping that Shalu will help set things right with Sujit. Shalu is quite conflicted through all of this as she can now see her chance with Sujit but is bound to try and treat him. Asha Parekh smiles approximately three times through the film, but her chemistry with Shammi is spot on. She shows a gentle empathy and tenderness with him and despite some questionable doctor patient interactions, I was glad to see someone wholeheartedly for Sujit. And he does blossom under her care, eventually regaining his memories and feeling robust enough to deal with losing Jenny.

He is able to declare his love for Shalu. But he still sees Shyam as his great friend and Shalu decides she must dispel that illusion so he can really move on. And by move on, I mean move on to her.

Does anyone ever run up against Prem Chopra and survive unscathed? Not Helen, sadly. Sujit and Shalu appeared to need about, oh, a nanosecond to deal with Jenny’s fate. I understood the plot point needed to be resolved but that was callous. And without wanting to be too spoilery I was hoping that random tree was sturdy and her aim was good.

Anyway.

The soundtrack is a delight and Shankar Jaikishan run from rollicking cabaret numbers to songs of quiet yearning. Helen gets a couple of good dances in before marriage and sarees end her career, and I liked seeing Madhumati as a clear Helen substitute and dancing up a storm. Shammi has always had great musicality and while he sometimes overdoes the hairography he really sells the swooning romance of the ballads.

See this for a star cast in a not so typical story, and for the bonus of Helen in a substantial if thankless role. Despite the downbeat elements, ultimately this is a story about finding your happiness where you can and learning to trust (but not indiscriminately, and never Prem Chopra). 4 stars!