Bajrangi Bhaijaan - A Movie Review

Bhajrangi Bhaijaan (in short BB) , the latest Salman Khan & Kareena Kapoor movie directed by Kabir Khan, got released during Eid (17-Jul-2015) and has not only been running successfully but also making and breaking many box office records.

Well, I would say, this movie deserves all that credit what it has been raking at the box office. BB is one of the most different movie that has been released in the recent times, touching upon the India-Pakistan relationship in a very sensitive and sensible manner. It is this acceptance of this sensitivity by the audience on both the sides of the border that has made this movie a big success not only in Indian but in Pakistan too.

The story is not so out of the ordinary. Pawan aka Bhajrangi (Salman Khan) is a devout Hanuman Bakth and leads a very honest and sincere life. He encounters a mute 6 year old girl in Kurukshetra, whom he calls Munni, who had lost her way in India. Salman after initial attempts of trying to handover the girl to Police and Embassy authorities, and saving the girl from clutches of human traffickers, finally takes it upon himself to unite the lost girl with her parents. Initially Salman assumes that the girl is somewhere from India, but when the girl at one point, reveals through gestures that she is a Pakistani and her parents are in Pakistan, it comes as a shock not only for him, but for the family of his fiancée Rasika (Kareena kapoor), with whom he is staying, especially this news doesn't go well with Kareena father, who is a Hindu fanatic and disagrees to keep a Muslim Pakistani child in his house, when the truth is out. The post interval takes us through the desert and the borders, where the hero travels length and breadth, endures physical assault and verbal accusations, from authorities of the other side. He is suspected of being an Indian spy and that lands him in more trouble in Pakistan. The only ray of hope for Salman in his quest to reach his goal is a Pakistani Journalist, who also initially misunderstands Salman and the little girl to be a spy but later realizes the good intent with which Salman has entered his country and helps him in this lone journey. Whether Salman manages to re-unite the girl with her parents and able to return back to India or not, forms the crux of the climax.

What really makes this movie different is that, it doesn't fall pray to the commercial elements of Bollywood cinema, there are no unwanted item songs, no unwanted fights, no (salman) body showing and no heroism (rather Salmanism) anywhere in the screenplay. Even though this is a Salman movie, the director has mellowed down his character and made him very relatable to any common man, without larger than life projection of the hero. So, that makes Salman so apt and convincible for his role. My !!!! My !!!! Salman has to be credited for still looking hot even in such a de-glamorized role like this and still makes you drool over his looks. Salman, in this movie has the potential to lure his non-fans to his side :)  The actor has actually given some good performance after a long time and not just relayed on his mass appeal and exaggerated heroic gimmicks. That has helped Salman strike gold. Salman chemistry with the little girl is more loveable than his chemistry with Kareena in this movie.

Kareena, has no great scope of performance in this movie, so nothing much to comment on her. She is literally forgotten in the post interval scenes, as she hardly makes any appearence and like any typical hindi movie, the heroine re-appears at the climax and makes her presence in the movie remembered. All she has done in this movie to perfection is that - she comes dressed well in all scenes, done a bit of dancing, smiled, loved and cared for salman and the little girl with right emotions.

Another hero in the movie, who has given equal competition for critical acclaim is the Pakistani Journalist, Chand Nawab, played by Nawazuddin Siddiqui. His introduction scene, where he does some series of bloopers, while recording a news coverage for his channel, is just a peek into the actor's fine acting skills, which we can see throughout the movie. His light hearted humor while talking to the Inspector while travelling in the jeep or his witty tackling of his so-called father-in-law in front of the police officer are enough to showcase what a natural actor he is. He takes over the story on his shoulder from Salman as we near the climax and he has done it to perfection.

BB has numerous reasons for its success, the bigger one is to the rich star cast. Despite of the biggies of the bollywood presence in the movie, who actually steals the show and emerges as the real star in this movie, is the little mute pakistani girl played by Harshali Malhotra. Her innocence and fresh looks just melts the audience hearts. Being a mute girl, for her age, she had a tuff challenge to emote through expressions and body language, which she has done with aplomb. She stays in your heart for a long time, even after the movie is over. Her emotional attachment to salman in this movie is so realistic, that it does make sense for a character like Pawan to goto any length to make this little girl happy.

Last but not the least, the caption of the ship, the director, Kabir Khan, from whose stable this blockbuster film has been released, deserves a Salute for giving a good cinema, which bollywood audience have been missing for a long time now. A movie with a strong emotional connect, interlooped with, realistic performances and solid story, has really made BB a deserving win at the Box Office. Whether Salman in the movie or not, this movie still would have been a big success, as it had not heavily backed on the star but the story. Any director movie with uncompramising story value, ought to be a box office hit. Bhajrangi Bhaijaan is a good example of that.

So, those wanting to enjoy a good cinema, whether you are Salman khan fan or not, just go and enjoy Bhajrani Bhaijaan, for a sheer pleasure of enjoying a quality cinema.

Telling you my Dreams

God knows its been how many years since I last looked into this space.....once upon a time, my big passion, what I called "Creative Exploration", for which I had taken all interest to create this blog and put my own content, seem to have become extinct now, to the extent, that I have completely forgotten that such a site exists, my site password, the URL to type to enter into this blog !!!! My goodness......it seems so ridiculously silly for me to think that I am so capable of forgetting my interests & passion for the sake of a mundane and monotonous life.


Well, actually thinking of it, I do have my own capabilities....I have juggled many tasks, both in office and home and spent most part of my day in engaging activities. I am happy and proud that am capable of being both a home maker and a career women, without compromising each other.
But that is not all.


I always believed that there is something beyond our usual routine, an out-of-the-ordinary behaviour/ habit/ character, that really makes each one of us unique and special and most importantly different from the rest. There are plenty of talents each of us have, if you think about it, when young, we might have excelled in any specific area like music, dance, sports, media, cinema, photography, extempore speeches/write-up, aristic hands etc,  but in the sad race to lead in our professional and personal lives, we often forget & ignore the talents that we dearly held close to us, as we grow up. Also the social and family pressures often redefine our priorities, that we invariably end up leading a life so different from what we had dreamt of, when we were young. Hardly few have the guts to follow their dreams, many succumb to social pressure and give up on them. In our society, Sucess is always relative to money/power/lifestyle that we lead....But it is not so. A real success to anyone is when they achieve their dreams and live their dreams, regardless of whether it is small or big.


If I really think deep about my dream, well I too have a dream, sorry, dreams....


Dream 1:
I really can't tell when, but I have nurtured secretly this thought of becoming an Author.....hahaha, don't laugh..it sounds funny to me too but I MEAN IT......may be I got influenced or should I say inspired by many authors whose books I have read over the span of a decade, which drew me towards the art of writing...I have always envied and appreciated any writer, however big or small...putting your thoughts to paper and making an impact out of it for your readers is not easily conceivable to all. So I always feel the writers are a supreme class of people, who can effectively touch your heart and mind being so many miles away and totally unknown to you, with this simple genius method of writing. Whether it is a Shakesphere or Leo Tolstoy or Sideny Sheldon or JK Rowling, when we read their work, if there is a tragedy we cry, if there is a war we fear, if there is a happy ending we rejoice, if there is a revolution, we too rise. A simple magic of a pen and a paper just empowers you, such is the power of writing...am truly intrigued by this art.  So here I am, dreaming to join that band wagon sometime in the future.


Dream 2:
I am a avid reader and a collector of good books(right now restricted to fictions only, but hoping to expand to other genres soon). May be in another two to three decades, if I continue this habit of collecting books, I may possibly claim to have enough collections to start a mini library for the public (especially children) to access. In this era of internet, whatzapp, facebook and other virtual games, children especially have forgotten the good habit of reading books. You may argue that everything is available on the internet, then why physical books are needed, agreed...but there are always health hazards associated with too much computer exposure. Kids need to stop using the virtual world too much and somewhere get connected to the real physical world.  Flipping each and every page of a book and reading it from its cover to the last page, is a sheer pleasure, only those who have done it can relate to it. I want to share my books and make children good readers. Books are after all the best companion one can have. If it sounds like a silly dream, let it be....but it is capable of opening the world of knowledge to the young minds. Academics alone doesn't make up knowledge, there are other far and wide knowledge which our physics, chemistry or math's doesn't offer. We need to look beyond them to gain that wordily wisdom and knowledge, and for that this library helps.


Yessssss, I have confessed my dreams, but just having dreams alone will not help...I need to try achieving them......having a library is something that needs to wait for some more years. But becoming an author, can happen sooner than the other, if I really try. This blog is the stepping stone for that dream, this is space to experiment my writing abilities. Many drops makes up an ocean. So small small writings, whatever it is, can take me step by step to my final destination. All it needs is practice, interest and determination. So, I have decided to bring this blog alive again. Write any damn thing that my mind tells me to, in this process am going to improve my vocabulary, slowly develop the art of writing and get some amateur experience too. If anyone is stopping by this article, wish me luck and support me by reading my work. But don't step there, you need to honestly criticize my work too. Critics are soul of a writer, without them, a writer is nothing....a critic can appreciate or dissect or mock or ridicule your work, but nonetheless, they are the one's who shape you as a better writer.


Wishing this journey to reach my dream destination doesn't stop due to social hurdles, If there is a will there is always a way. I will try to stay focused as much as I can. Going forward, there are going to be many articles - social  and political discussions, book and movie reviews, mini stories, casual ramblings and sweet nothings that I am going to write...It feels good to be back to writing after such a long gap...hope this "feel good" feeling doesn't stop just with me, but spreads to my readers too...


Happy writing to me and happy reading to you. Ciao soon..