Cast – Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra
Director – Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Based On – ‘Rau’ by Nagnath S. Inamdar
Screenplay – Prakash R. Kapadia
Through and through a Bhansali movie it is… in his signature style, comprising of opulence, grandeur, beautiful sets, costumes and of course a lot of angst, love and passion.
The period drama that has been tweaked to add melodrama moves at a slow pace and is slightly lengthier than what should have been. The overindulgence of the director is obvious in a lot of parts. But then with film makers like Bhansali and Gowarikar, we have to take it in stride.
For me, the movie had a lot to offer .
The performances are pretty fair and appreciable if not dazzling.
Ranveer gives his best to the character with all his energies and exuberance. His Marathi diction stands out right in the first opening scene never actually slipping away throughout .
Priyanka is definitely at her subtle best . In a role which gave her a lot to portray in terms of complex emotions, she has definitely proved her maturity as an actress. You could undoubtedly see her eyes emote the sparkle of love and the angst of a wife so well.
Deepika shines… honestly, more with her beauty and costumes. There was nothing missing but nothing to awe about as far as her performance is concerned.
Needless to say, the art direction and sets are marvellous. The costumes are well researched and outstanding. The music is good in certain songs and seems average in some. Typical lyrical dialogues have been liberally used.
But what stands out as usual is the way Bhansali plays with colours in his frames to depict what he wants to convey. Darkness and melancholy prevail in his movies and so does longing, pain and passion.
The climax though a little stretched does manage to make us feel for the characters and want to google the real fate of the protagonists.
The movie is definitely a good watch and thumbs up for those who have a penchant for Bhansali kind of cinema.