Love At First Sight

Rating: 9/10 (16 August 2010)

Do you remember once there was a whole clump of movies made on the legend of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh? How many of them do you remember today? Perhaps the one that starred Ajay Devgan at max? Conversely, you will not be able to forget 'Rang De Basanti'. No, the movie is not again about the freedom fighter's life. It is about awakening of distrait direction-less youth taking inspiration from his life. If you thought 'Dil Chahta Hai' was perfect and you loved it, behold, we have Rang De Basanti (RDB). The movie is not only perfect with its script; it is the execution that takes it further to be ranked among all time greats.
The movie revolves around a British girl Sue (Alice Patten), whose grandfather was warden in the jail where Bhagat Singh was hanged. Sue arrives in India to make a film on the life and deeds of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, with her only accomplice in India, Sonia (Soha Ali Khan). After meeting the happy-go-lucky DJ (Amir Khan), she decides to sign him and his vagabond friends as the main characters of her film. DJ and his friends Karan (Sidharth), Aslam (Kunal Kapoor) and Sukhi (Sharman Joshi) start working for her only for fun sake, not at all believing in the quintessence of the legend of Bhagat Singh. Laxman Panday (Atul Kulkarni), their once biggest adversary, also joins them in their film playing Bismal Ram from history after he impresses Sue with his knowledge and belief in the legend.
The more they progress with their film production and get to know more about the freedom fighter, their beliefs start changing. Just at that perfect time, calamity strikes when their fifth friend and Sonia's fiancé, Ajay (Madhavan) an air force pilot, dies in a plane crash. The government officials attempt to hide their corruption in purchasing aircraft spare parts and put the blame on 'incapability' of Ajay. DJ and his friends stand against the government to save the reputation of Ajay, only to be tortured by police and Ajay's mother (Waheeda Rehman) getting caught in stupor. The gang gets up to seek vengeance from the government and to tell the real story to the world in a Bhagat Singh style. They succeed, but only after paying a very high cost.
The script is the strongest one Indian Cinema has seen in recent times, but hats off to the director Rakeysh Mehra for the perfect execution and justice to the script. Certainly, Bollywood could not afford another Mangal Panday, which also had strong script but fell short in execution. Sequences, treatment and especially the connect between history and present is so neatly done that it keeps the viewers glued to the screen. If the humor element in the first half makes you laugh aloud, you find it impossible not to feel the pain our heroes go through in the second half. In addition, it will be unfair not to mention the editing and background score by A.R. Rehman. A word of praise for cinematographer Binod Pradhan for his innovative camera angles particularly in the sequence when Ajay proposes to Sonia.
Now the individual performances. Amir Khan does a wonderful job once again, as he always does. Although his tainted Punjabi accent leaves a bit of desire in the first half an hour; but later his expressions and spontaneity makes up for everything. Yet another award winning performance. Last few minutes of his act keep one wheezing. The best part is that despite being much older than other actors in the gang are, he looks as young as they do.
The surprise packages in the film are south actor Sidharth and the British actress Alice Patten as they both give remarkable performances. Arjun Rampal will regret not doing the role of Sidharth, which initially was offered to him. From a desensitized unyielding young man to a touching finale, Sidharth looks flawless. Alice Patten's Hindi sounds very cute and her unusual romance with DJ is highlight of the movie.
After a cameo in Lajja and two comic roles in Style and Excuse Me, Sharman Joshi comes out to be the funniest thing in RDB. Kunal Kapoor might have gone disregarded in Meenaxi but will definitely be noticed here. Atul Kulkarni is a serious filmmaker's darling, anyway. You hate him whenever he plays a negative character and you will love him in Rang De Basanti. Soha Ali Khan has improved considerably since Dil Maange More and promises a lot for future. One might give her credit for her improved dressing sense as well. Kirron Kher, Anupam Kher, Om Puri and Madhavan have very small roles but they fit perfectly into them.
The only negative I felt about the movie was not having a happy ending. Other than Devdas and Tere Naam, we might not have seen any blockbuster with a sad ending lately. However, the young and upbeat feel of the movie is going to make it a conspicuous success in the metros. How small towns respond to it, cannot be said yet. Nonetheless, one hopes for a positive response because of the patriotic and emotional touch. For me, by all means, RDB was love at first sight.