Release date: 21 June 2013
E24telugu.com Rating : 3.5/5
Producer : Krishika Lulla
Director : Anand L. Rai
Music Director :A. R. Rahman
Starring: Dhanush, Sonam Kapoor
Dhanush, one of the biggest stars in Tamil cinema and a national award winner, makes his debut in Bollywood with Anand Rai’s much awaited film ‘Raanjhanaa’. This romantic drama also stars Sonam Kapoor and Abhay Deol in other key roles and is all set to hit the theatres tomorrow. E24telugu.com has been to a special screening of ‘Raanjhanaa’ and we are bringing you an exclusive review of the film well in advance and so read on to know more.
Story :
‘Raanjhanaa’ is a term used in Uttar Pradesh to refer to a person who is deeply and madly in love with someone. In this context, ‘Raanjhanaa’ is a story of Kundan (Dhanush), a Hindu Brahmin boy, living in the holy city of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. In his childhood, Kundan falls in love with Zoya (Sonam Kapoor), a Muslim girl, and goes on to chase her till he turns 16. A series of events lead to Zoya being sent to Allahabad for further studies by her parents and soon Zoya forgets Kundan. She then returns to Varanasi after eight long years where Kundan is still eagerly and patiently waiting for the love of his life. But little does our Raanjhanaa know that Zoya is now a big girl and has fallen in love with her co-student and youth politician (Abhay Deol).
The focus then shifts to the question of whether Kundan can finally win Zoya’s love? This one question is what the rest of the movie is all about!
Positive Points :
Raanjhanaa moves smoothly ahead from a cute childhood love story to an intense and mature one. Director Anand has very creatively directed the scenes that simultaneously amuse and charm the viewers.
Talking about performances, I would like to start with Naman Jain, the child artist who plays the young Dhanush. Last seen in the Zoya Akthar segment of ‘Bombay Talkies’, Naman delivers a performance that clears marks him as a future superstar. Sonam Kapoor comes up with an intense portrayal of a character who is a mix of beauty and power and she gives an applause- worthy performance. Then there is Abhay Deol who doesn’t have too many scenes but still manages to grab the viewers’ interest everytime he walks into a scene. Swara Bhaskar and Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, the other characters from Varanasi, have given splendid performances and the quirky dialogue delivery by Zeeshan will definitely have you in splits.
Now if you are still wondering why Dhanush is still not being mentioned, that’s because I was saving the best for the last! Dhanush may have become popular across India for his singing talent in ‘Kolaveri Di’, but his acting in ‘Raanjhanaa’ is nothing less than a wonderful revelation for viewers. He is the surprise package and his sheer talent in playing a lovable and intense loverboy has the viewers longing for more. Whether it is the comic or the intense scenes, Dhanush leaves no room for error and proves that his earlier National Award for acting was well deserved.
Negative Points :
Though the first half doesn’t let the viewers take their eyes of the screen, the second half turns out to be a little inappropriate. The second half suffers mainly because of the political sequences which are not that important and this stretches the movie to an extent that the audiences get bored. The romance vanishes off the screens and takes the audiences interest levels down. Despite his talent, Abhay Deol is clearly wasted in the film where he clearly does not have much to do.
Technical Aspects :
After a long gap, music maestro A R Rahman has come up with an interesting album that expresses romance in a many unique ways. Some of the tracks like ‘Tum Tak’ and ‘Raanjhanaa’ are extremely lovable and fit smoothly in the narrative.
The cinematography is first-rate as the camera easily captures the minute religious and cultural aspects of Varanasi. Also, the editing and background score is above average. However, lot of credit should go to the dialogues which are the film’s biggest strengths and take the film to a different level. The typical north Indian dialogues make the scenes look even more realistic and authentic and this where Director Anand scores.
Final Word :
Overall, ‘Raanjhanaa’ is a story of love and treachery with some surprisingly awesome performances by the entire cast. Despite a slow second half the film’s other strengths make the movie a must watch!
