Saawariya - A Boring Epic

Sanjay Leela Bhansali is back with Saawariya after the critically acclaimed Black (Amitabh Bachchan, Rani Mukherjee). The promos of Saawariya have Bhansali’s signature style all over it.With Saawariya he launches two star kids, Rishi Kapoor’s son Ranbir Kapoor and Anil Kapoor’s daughter Sonam Kapoor. The movie also stars Rani Mukherjee and the dashing Salman Khan. Clashing this Friday with Shahrukh Khan’s Om Shanti Om, the film is a Romantic Musical based on Fyodor Dostoevsky’s short story White Nights.
The story is about two lonely youngsters who accidently meet each other.
Raj (Ranbir Kapoor), is a dreamer. He spends most part of his day at home, creating riddles, solving them and writing poetry. He loves arguing with his landlady Miss Disa (Zohra Sehgal), with whom he shares a love-hate relationship.But one night this lonely guy stumbles upon the charming, shy and mysterious Sakina (Sonam Kapoor), a girl with a secret past.Their unexpected encounter under a bridge progresses to friendship and an impromptu romance in a remote town near Shimla.They spend four nights together. With the passing of each night, Raj falls more and more in love with Sakina and tries to win her heart, but Sakina sees him as a friend and begins to trust him enough to share her secret.But when Sakina reveals why she cannot reciprocate his love, Raj is unable to accept her past and is driven into a world of madness and romance. Will the same bridge where the two lovers met become the bridge that separates them?
Music plays a key role in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s film and for Saawariya he has teamed up with newcomer Monty Sharma, nephew of music composer Pyarelal (of Laksmikanth - Pyarelal fame). Monty has done a great job in composing the love songs, mujras and qawwallis.
This is Hollywood production house "Sony Pictures" first Bollywood movie!
Overall Saawariya is a bore and fails to entertain. Having seen Bhansali’s earlier movies like Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Devdas and Black my expectations from the master director was high, but with Saawariya he disappoints for the first time. A wafer thin story line is dragged with too many songs. Basically the story in itself is dull and with a sluggish pace it makes it even harder to sit through. Under Bhansali’s direction Saawariya would be the first movie which leaves you puzzled. You are left with so many questions lingering in your mind, with answers to none.
What did Sakina see in Imaan to fall in love with him? She knows nothing about him except for his name then on what basis does she wait for him? Also when did they even have the time to bond so much that she considers him the love of her life? Hardly any communication, how could it lead to romance? Imaan is a mystery. Why does he come and why does he leave? What is his profession? Nothing is known. If Gulabji loves Raj, why did she then get him thrown out of the house and get him beaten when he came to her? What was the reason for her sudden aggression? If Sakina thinks admitting Raj as her friend to her relative will lead to problems with her grandmom. Then how does she justify running around and playing with him on the streets and in her house on the day of id? Its not just the story that is flawed but almost everything in the movie. The visuals get tedious to watch as it is just dark from the beginning to the end and you crave for some bright light. It’s locales are too far fetched to suit the contemporary world. The only thing that came as relief is the performance of its lead stars. The title track, Masha Allah, Yoon Shabnami are few songs that stand out.