Saawariya
Friday, 09 Nov 2007 15:04
Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kappor in new Bollywood hit Saawariya.
Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, out November 9th in cinemas, starring Ranbir Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, Salman Khan, Rani, running time 131 minutes.
In a nutshell...
Bollywood, Cheesy, Romantic, Musical, Unfortunate.
What's it all about?
Saawariya is Bhansali's follow up to his acclaimed film Black (2005), and is apparently based on Dostoyevsky's White Nights. Ranbir Raj (Ranbir Kapoor), a free spirited and charismatic idealist arrives in a dreamy, surreal town and becomes a singer in its swankiest nightclub. Here he meets Gulabji (Rani Mukerji), a prostitute, who immediately falls for his naivety and Michael Jackson-esque dance moves.
One night he notices a mysterious girl crying on a bridge holding an umbrella. As he tries to strike a conversation, she shies away. But he still keeps following her and both end up becoming friends. This mystery girl, Sakina (Sonam Kapoor), leaves Ranbir intrigued and love-stricken.
Just when Ranbir is about to express his true feelings to her, she reveals the reason behind her unhappiness. She tells him she is waiting for her love, Imaan (Salman Khan) to return. Ranbir manages to hide his emotional distress and the rest of the film is his attempt to win her over as she struggles to decide whether Imaan will ever return for her.
Who's in it?
Newcomers Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor (unrelated, but both the offspring of renowned Indian actors) make their vibrant theatrical debuts in the film as the star-crossed lovers on which the plot is focused. Veteran Bollywood stars Salman Khan (Baghban, Tere Nom) and Rani Mukherjee (Black, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna) special appearances in the film were kept secret by Bhansali until shortly before its release. The film's ten musical numbers were written by Monty Sharma and performed by a variety of renowned Indian musicians.
As an example...
I can't remember one and can't find any on the internet. This is probably because the film is mostly in another language.
Likelihood of a trip to the Oscars
So far the critics have not been especially kind to Bhansali, and, despite a relatively strong release worldwide, Sawaariya has been somewhat eclipsed by the greater box-office success of Om Shanti Om. While the film will appeal to fans of the Bollywood musical, I doubt this will bring it through to the Oscars.
What the others say
"Eye and ear candy for fans of Indian musical cinema, it is two hours 11 minutes - bracingly compact by Bollywood standards - of wide-screen close-ups, fanciful sets, colorful costumes, bellybuttons, almost-kisses and ten pumped-up, achingly sweet songs," - A.O. Scott, the New York Times
"How can it be that a movie as beautiful to look at as Saawariya is so ... boring?"
- New York Post
So is it any good?
As Bhansali finds himself stuck between Western and Indian audiences, Sawaariya is a sort of Bollywood-ized Moulin Rouge: vivid imagery and saturated colours, stunning music and dance, an epically romantic love plot, and trampy women in fancy costume. The shame here is that it's nowhere near as good as MR but perhaps even more depressing. Of course, I'm biased. So, to be fair, Indian audiences and avid Bollywood fans will likely be pleased by the excellent musical numbers, succulent cinematography and Raj's surly/hilarious adopted Grandmother (Zohra Sehgal), Lilian.
But as charming, charismatic and good-looking as the two young actors are, the film drags on "she loves me... she loves me not" ad nauseum. The plot is set after the first few opening scenes, but continues to waver back and forth, back and forth for so long that the midsection of the movie becomes a blur as we lose all sense of time. It could easily have done without a few of these back and forths and produced the same effect along with a more cohesive film.
The most memorable part for me was the theme song, Saawariya, playing during the ending credits, which has managed to continue echoing in my head throughout the weekend, with Raj cheesily reliving his magical moments with Sakina doing cute boxing moves at the camera in a puddled alley - kinda lame and not particularly poignant. See this film for the music and dance, which are superb entertainment, but do so at your own risk knowing that there are interludes between numbers. Love sucks, and this movie shows that - it just takes about two and a half hours.
6/10
Spencer Thanhouser
"Bhansali's Saawariya has done no justice to the talents of both Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor. The storyline and the direction is unbelievable. It proves that star kids can be better than their parents. I would say that Ranbir will go a very long way. Rishi wouldn't have worked as a sexy macho hero ever but Ranbir is every inch oozing with masculinity. It is a shame that Bansali couldn't portray that clearly in this movie. So also the face of Sonam is a welcome change and exude innocence to the core. How Bansali faltered here is a mystery. All in all a clear waste of talent. Sorry to see that Sanjay Leela Bansali missed big time." - Shaji Geevarghese
"Salman Khan has finally broken the silence and spoken out for his fans regarding the truth about the media and recent controversies surrounding him.
Do check out his official blog duskadum.blogspot.com
"For the next few days you will hear and read a lot of s**t about me, a lot of it. Keep on reading it, but dont react to it."
Salman speaks out for his fans to clear out the stories in the media for his fans" - Maria Lobo
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