Raanjhanaa (2013)

That was an excellent one.

Sorry, this movie sucks

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

The story-telling is good with flashbacks.The film is both funny and heartbreaking. You smile in a scene and get a soulcrushing revelation in the next.

'Raanjhana" is a blend of several themes like childhood love, family drama, and politics, which churns into an entertaining watch throughout. The film is remarkable for the good performances, music, and the excitement the story perpetuates. The first half is bit slow where the film takes you to Lucknow where blossoms a childhood romance and second half enters into the political upheavals of Delhi. Both the stories succeeds to grip you with the beauty the film has with good performances from Dhanus, Sonam Kapoor, and Abhay Deol. However, Dhanus carries the most of the footage of the film and deserves the major credit despite the rough tough look he gets in the movie. However, the film is pretty slow at the beginning and goes for easy answers in the second half.Rating: 2 stars out of 4

Never had a Bollywood movie enthralled and entertained me as Raanjhanaa did since Gangs of Wasseypur. It is the most heart felt mind blowing experience you will ever have! Raanjhanaa is a love story, a story the like of which you have never seen before. It is an intense, raw steaming cauldron of love brimming with unprecedented passion where love consumes all. (It is just so so difficult to put down my thoughts on this one. But damn man, I am going to give it a try.) It is not your typical warm mushy love story, the kind that are you are so used to watching. It explores love in its truest, its purest form. There are moments where the scenes are so stupid, so clichéd that it seems to be taken from a very typical Bollywood movie, that you might have just laughed at its silliness. But wait for a few moments and those scenes will grow on you. And moreover how would one expect the translation of one's passion by a generation who has fed from Bollywood movies. The difference is startling when you see Sonam Kapoor's restrained, subtle love, not because it does not carry the intensity and passion of Dhanush's, but because it is the upbringing she gets. Sonam's love for Abhay is as raw as Dhanush's for Sonam. And here where the movie shines in the exploration of love. It studies two protagonists, both of whom shimmering with love and their affection directed at different persons, but at a metaphysical level united as one in their unbridled passion. It may seem to many that there is a lot of negativity with Sonam's character, be it the way she seeks Dhanush's help or later her actions result into his miserable condition. But if one looks closely at Dhanush's character you will see how closely Dhanush at the core is the same being. Apparently, people will naturally sympathize with Kundan and not with Zoya and thereby lies a major flaw in the treatment of the story. Since the two love stories reach the same dead end and the two characters are indistinguishable in their actions and deeds, it is inappropriate for one character to be portrayed in a more positive light than the other. Dialogues are very well written, many of which are witty and funny without taking away the intensity of the moments. They seem to blend with the characters, the landscape and the story seamlessly without ever feeling like just an addition to the ongoing surroundings to add to the entertainment. Dialogues never make any moment melodramatic or too fantastical to believe, they give an earthiness, a realism to the story that plays a pivotal role in making the movie so good. Dhanush has acted brilliantly and is really a talent house to look forward to. Sonam Kapoor has also given a good performance. Abhay Deol is wasted. The supporting cast is brilliant with Murari and BIndiya. The cinematography is also up to mark capturing the aesthetic of Varanasi on the celluloid. A. R. Rahman excels with this pitch perfect music direction. Raanjhanaa is a must watch for the love story that it is, a love story of fall and redemption that is not a fairy tale that culminates in the union, but a portrayal, a canvas where different true colours of love are splashed to make something so beautiful that it will remain forever etched out in my heart for eternity. In spite of all the tragedy and heart breaks, Raanjhanaa is not a sad movie. It is a celebration of love. Maybe sometimes it is just enough to love.

When the film promos hit air, I thought this will be just another Issaqzaade type film but I was wrong The film is multilayered and well handled The first half slowly and steadily explores the romance angle and it's well handled till the interval it keeps surprising you. The second half focuses more on the politics but yet the story is well narrated and handled superbly, though Zoya's character does seem mystified at times but yet the story is well handled and the climax is brilliant.Direction is good, Music by A.R.Rahman is amazing Dhanush doesn't have any qualities of a star but of an actor, he infuses life into Kundan that he becomes the character, Barring his Hindi which isn't perfect as he is south Indian yet he does a great job Sonam Kapoor who was never known for her acting talent surprises and does a perfect job, her diction too is off many times but she is simply superb Amongst rest Abhay Deol in a cameo is superb Swara Bhaskar is good, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub last seen in Jannat 2 is amazing, rest are all good

Raanjhanaa starts out very promising with a cool street kid falling for a pretty yuppie girl. The Kid is blind to the beautiful world he lives in and starts to become uncool in the pursuit of his infatuation. A Muslim and Hindu dilemma is then thrown into the ring. So far it sounds mediocre on paper, but actually the film manages to keep it all together well.Now we have the kid losing grip and trading his soul for a deluded dream. Big dollops of melodrama are heaped on now with some staged set-ups to show that the kid can actually run the state. Finally the pay-off heightens the film at the end.Pros - Realistic flawed characters, Acting, CinematographyCons - StoryOverall - Start and End was good