Movie: Shuddh Desi Romance
Director: Maneesh Sharma
Cast: Sushant Singh Rajput, Parineeti Chopra, Vani Kapoor and Rishi Kapoor
Rating: ****
The real star of “Shuddh Desi Romance” is not its director Maneesh Sharma, not even actors Sushant, Parineeti and Vani, but its writer Jaideep Sahni, who makes us look at ‘modern’ relationships through a fresh pair of eyes by avoiding all the Bollywood clichés usually associated with a love story.
The reality is this that two people who are extremely fond of each other and are drawn closer by love may not necessarily end up marrying and live a ‘Shuddh’ Indian marital life like our own parents and forefathers. Look around, ask yourself and you will realize that whatever is happening around is, more or less, akin to the theme of the film.
You know the film gets it right from scene one when you realize that the story is not set in Mumbai or Delhi, but instead in Jaipur. It’s easy to point fingers at city bred youngsters who we believe are known for getting in and getting out of a relationship in a jiffy, but SDR smartly steers away from such clichés. It proves that the philosophy it addresses is not applicable to merely cities, but its rapidly changing, 21st century-influenced, young and independent youngsters.
The characters in the film are always on the run. They run away from away each other, come back together and again run away. There is Raghu (Sushant), who prefers the first half of his name than being called Raghuram Sitaram. He falls for Gayatri (talented Parineeti), a commitment-phobic lover, night before he is set to marry Tara (charming Vani Kapoor), who is an independent woman who goes after what she wants.
SDH is a slice of modern-day confused romance shackled by the communal tags such as love, marriage and relationships. There is no right and wrong way of looking at what is shown in the film. It’s a brave story about boyfriends and girlfriends, who don’t mind living together without being bogged down by the pressure to get married and called a ‘couple’ by the society. It’s the story of those women who can still walk with their heads high even after being ditched at the altar.
Writer Sahni lets the film hover between contemporary generation and traditional values. While characters such as Raghu, Gayatri and Tara belong to the modern generation, Sahni, skillfully, includes a character played by Rishi Kapoor to be the one who takes a traditional stance every now and then.
The film captures the spirit of the Pink city to perfection. From the bustling streets of the bazaar to the colors of the ‘baarat’, SDH makes you fall in love with the film, while its character fall out love. Director Maneesh Sharma extracts the best out of his characters. The performances of Sushant, Parineeti and Vani are nothing short of extraordinary, while Rishi Kapoor chips in with a delightful act.
The film belongs to Parineeti without an iota of doubt. She is the strongest woman you would have come across on screen in a long time, while Sushant is equally good in his role. He slips into the shoes of his character with ease and confidence that you don’t see often in an actor who is just a film old. Vani as the charming debutante is fitting in her part.
The regular use of talking-into-the-camera technique didn’t quite impress me. This is where the film tries to spoon-feed by making its characters tell us what is exactly happening. SDH does lose steam somewhere in the second half, but gives a satisfying end, which by the way was not received well by many.
Embrace SDH with an open heart and smile, you’ll enjoy it. For those who have problem with all the kissing and making out in the film, its best if you stick to the overtly clichéd DDLJ.