Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani movie review: Karan Johar packs a few surprises in Alia Bhatt-Ranveer Singh's … – The Indian Express
Having completed watching ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani’, I’ve to admit I’m conflicted: do I flip my again on this model new movie from Karan Johar as a result of it’s loud and melodramatic in the best way mainstream Hindi household dramas was once and nonetheless determinedly are, refusing to budge from broad-brush-stroke-y conventions, 2023 be damned; or do I cherry choose a number of the higher, braver elements of the movie which go large due to the movie platforms them so giant, and be completely happy about that within the at-least-it-has-these-bits-too method?
Rocky Randhawa (Ranveer Singh) from Karol Bagh is the sort of over-the-top Punjabi lunk that Ranveer Singh can do, and has executed, in his sleep. Singh’s endearing power isn’t to be denied, however we’ve seen this template oh-so-many-times earlier than. The scion of a multi-millionaire mithai-wala, Rocky is accessorised with straining ‘dole sholey’, a private coach cum BFF, protein shakes, facial hair, and a fleet of fancy SUVs which match his outfit-of-the-day. His English is ‘tooti-phooti’, however he’s good-at-heart. Rani Chatterji (Alia Bhatt) is an ‘ekdum mishti’ Bengali lady who has gone the LSR-American liberal arts faculty route, and is now a bleeding coronary heart liberal media skilled, who loves pulling up dodgy netas indulging in whataboutery round ladies’s security.
Rocky lives in a palace, which appears like a set, together with his candy Dadaji (Dharmendra) who lives in a world of his personal, an ultra-stern Dadiji (Jaya Bachchan), Daddyji (Aamir Bashir), mummyji (Kshitee Jog) and choti behen (Anjali Anand). The place in madly crowded West Delhi might that sprawling home exist? Foolish query. Rani’s household consists of an English-spouting mommy (Churni Ganguly), an unconventional father (Tota Roy Choudhury) who’s a Kathak dancer-cum-teacher, and a ‘thakuma’ (Shabana Azmi) who has as soon as beloved and misplaced. What sort of TV channel permits feisty truth-seeking anchors a free rein as of late? What did I say about foolish questions?
Rocky and Rani fall in love. You realize, first sight and all. And whereas they’re at it, we’re given a really ‘Kabhie Kabhi’ vibe in Kashmir the place there may be snow, and swirling chiffons and songs. This section appears to exist solely as a result of the film wished a song-in-Kashmir, not as a result of the plot has any use for it. The 2 Rs could ostensibly be chalk and cheese, however their hearts are one. However their households differ wildly in tradition and values, and scowl and demean one another: so very ‘Two States’, proper? Cliches abound. Bengalis love roshogolla and Rabindra Nath Tagore, do adda, and are scornful of uncultured Punjabis. Speak about stereotypes. Punjabis, particularly the type that the Randhawas symbolize, consider in squashing their ladies, and throwing their weight round. Lastly, you lose depend of Johar’s personal movies, in addition to the much-loved Yashraj romances, and a zillion different household dramas, which maintain getting referenced, with characters bursting into outdated Hindi movie songs to maintain us doused in nostalgia.
In between this mesh of the right way to pour palatable wine in bottles which ought to seem new, however not startlingly so, the movie retains desirous to throw a shock or two. And that is the place it scores, even when it has to do in a severely explanatory method: Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani has no place for nuance, or subtlety; it’s the sort of movie the place each notice is hammered in. The harried, bullied ladies of the Randhawa family lastly discover their voice (observe your coronary heart!), the overbearing grandma (ladies will also be patriarchal!) discovers the error of her methods, and the lads (each Singh and Bashir!) study that respecting the elders is one factor, however nobody has the proper to be nasty to the women. Down with misogyny and patriarchy. Up with feminism. However wrap all of them in on-the-nose dialogues. It’s usual, usual: romance between the rebellious younger, however loving their households, and everybody dwelling fortunately after.
Probably the most placing sequences is shared by Ranveer Singh and Tota Roy Choudhuri whirling about on ‘Dola Re’ at a Durga puja pandal: the subversion concerned in males being flagrantly sexually fluid is smack in-your-face, however is efficient. One other one options Ranveer and Churni Ganguly in a lingerie store, the place a bra turns into a hook to hold a feminist lecture. You possibly can have a look at it as an awesome progressive step, or an enormous gimmick; it’s, at the very least, completely different. However couldn’t it have been executed with out moving into lecture mode? And people are about the one issues we are able to have a good time on this movie, which has an excessive amount of drama, and whose beats we thought we had been executed and dusted with.
In the meantime, Alia Bhatt, glowing, eyes lined in darkish kohl, owns this movie, the irrepressible Ranveer giving her good firm. However the place’s the jumping-your-bones-spark regardless of the kissy-kissy scenes? Definitely not sufficient to miss the drained saas-bahu video games being performed out within the Randhawa parlour. Jaya Bachchan will get quite a lot of display screen area, however is given, unforgivably, not even one probability to chill out her frown and un-purse her lips. Dharmendra, enjoying a person who has misplaced his reminiscence (in fact Rocky has to pronounce it as ‘mammary’), is made to spend an excessive amount of time trying spaced out. I actually loved Shabana’s against-type casting, and her immediately sinking into an old-style heroine who has fortified herself with a quick interlude with a good-looking poet when she, and he, had been younger. And each Roy Choudhury and Ganguly go away an influence.
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Karan Johar has all the time labored with the adage that describes a typical Bollywood potboiler– ‘iss movie mein emotion hai, color hai, aur bahut saara loud background music hai’– however in his higher outings, he has managed to fuse these components in his personal particular person stamp– an unapologetic tacky aesthetic which matches hand-in-hand with moments of actual coronary heart, designed to make us soften. However in Rocky and Rani, that Johar is seen too hardly ever. You need large units? Right here, take ginormous. You need shine? Naach-gaana? Fairly funerals? Overdressed mansions? It’s all there. And also you need originality? That’s asking for an excessive amount of.
Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani
Director – Karan Johar
Forged – Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan, Shabana Azmi, Aamir Bashir, Tota Roy Choudhury, Churni Ganguly, Kshitee Jog, Anjali Anand
Score – 2/5
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