I’m
really excited and can’t stop raving about the new crop of filmmakers. If
Maneesh Sharma’s Band Baja Baaraat had stunned you with its freshness in content
as well as treatment, then the director’s latest offering, Shuddh Desi Romance has
raised the bar a notch higher. The Delhi director has got back the magic of
story telling after a small aberration called Ladies v Ricky Bahl.
First,
the absolute positives...for a change the protagonist of a Hindi commercial
cinema is actually dumbfounded when he’s around girls. He can’t rattle off
witty lines to impress girls but Raghu Ram (Sushant Singh Rajput) does impress,
in fact two of them. Sushant gets to romance two 'desi' girls who are 'videshi' in their ways. And they want to remain glued to him, so what if he ran away
from the wedding pandal of Tara
(Vaani Kapoor) in front of Gayatri (Parineeti Chopra). They both want him.
For
an out an out commercial venture, the director has the three main leads talking
to the camera in between scenes – on their take at that particular moment. But
it would have been better if it could have related/revealed feelings, which
were not so obvious.
As
far as performances go, all three of the main leads are outstanding. Maneesh
has the ability to extract the best from his actors – remember Ranveer and
Anushka’s power-packed acting in BBB. Parineeti has again not struck a single
wrong note. Her role might not be very different from the I-care-a-damn bubbly
girl-next-door, but you have to give it to her – she’s flawless as Gayatri.
Sushant’s
a difficult one. Writer Jaideep Sahni of Khosla ka Ghosla and Chak de India
fame has etched out two clearly defined and distinct female characters but
Raghu Ram is full of contradictions. The way it is written and acted, is open to
debate. He is a tour guide who, at best, is insecure and unsure; but manages to
lure two smart and bold women into bed. From going as a hired baarati to running away from his own
wedding – Sushant had a lot on his plate. He manages to portray all the
contradictions of the character. Brilliant. Many might argue that the character
could have been handled ‘differently’ but could never have been handled
‘better’. The other female lead Aussie import Vaani Kapoor also has not given
any reason to complain.
In
fact the heavy indulgence with lead players, did leave all the other characters
looking like caricatures. Even Rishi Kapoor, playing a wedding planner, struggles
to leave a mark, despite getting a meaty role – not to take away from his
acting prowess.
Another
big plus has been the way songs have been interspersed with the story telling.
And the difficult task of shooting entire song sequences in one room has been
overcome with brilliant shot division using jump cuts. But you wish that the
love making scenes could have been more hurried and rough than the beautifully but
measured one.
If
in BBB it was the brilliant usage of by lanes of crowded Delhi, , then SDR
exploits the colour, mood and chaos of the Pink city to the hilt.
The
light-hearted, chaotic climax may not appeal to many but brings out our
over-indulgence in the institution of marriage in a lighter vein. Not a very
emotional or dramatic climax as the director lets you wear the objective lens
to gaze at his cinema.
A
truly outstanding effort! Gosh, we are living in good times!
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