The
first look of Vikramaditya Motwane’s Lootera itself made a good
impression in an average movie buff’s mind, and there was an eagerness
to know what the film would be like.
In the promos and posters, hottie
Ranveer Singh and classic beauty Sonakshi Sinha looked like they were
made for each other. But their romance in the film is not that perfect –
in fact, far from it. There’s young love, heartbreak, longing and
closure.
The story of Lootera is set in 1950s Manikpur in West
Bengal. Pakhi (Sonakshi), a graceful yet playful zamindar‘s (Barun
Chanda) daughter who is deprived of romance. Varun (Ranveer), an
archaeologist who wants to dig up her family’s property and uses that as
an excuse to stay with them. Pakhi falls for Varun’s quiet charm, and
love blossoms amidst the couple’s silences and painting lessons. But it
seems too good to be true, and Varun’s real identity devastates Pakhi
and her father. The lovers separate, only to reunite by chance in
Dalhousie. And this time, Varun does not want to turn his back on Pakhi,
even if that means risking his life.
Sonakshi is very convincing
as Pakhi, the beautiful, mischievous child woman who falls hopelessly
in love with a handsome man she knocks down with her car. Her character
is dignified but has child-like emotional intelligence. And yet, when
her world turns upside down, an ailing Pakhi takes it in her stride,
concentrating instead on finishing her book – and waiting for ‘the last
leaf’ to fall from the tree, so she could be at peace.
Ranveer
makes for a very pretty frame. He expresses through his eyes and is also
good in the action sequences. But acting-wise, one feels he just
followed the director’s orders and didn’t push the envelope.
The
lead pair’s chemistry is unique in its love-hate nature. But one feels
let down by the lack of more romance in the film. Pakhi must’ve felt the
same way when Varun deserted her, maybe? Since Varun is not back for
Pakhi, but just happens to be with her again, rekindling of passion
probably takes time. Still, scenes like the one where Varun forces an
injection down Pakhi – with orgasmic effect – turns out well and shows
more chemistry between Ranveer and Sonakshi than their much publicised
‘intimate’ scene.
Motwane takes inspiration from Rabindranath
Tagore, and O Henry’s The Last Leaf for the story. For filmmaking
inputs, it’s Guru Dutt and Satyajit Ray. It’s obvious how much Motwane
enjoyed making this movie, using old-world cinematic language to bring
home the point. No frame is wasted.
Poetic cinematography by
Mahendra Shetty makes even the bland sequences in the movie stand out.
Among the supporting cast, TV actor Vikrant Massey as Varun’s friend Deb
is a discovery. Arif Zakaria, Adil Hussain, Dibyendu Bhattacharya and
Barun Chanda perform well, but a talented Divya Dutta seems to be
wasted.
The songs of Lootera blend with the story, and thankfully
there’s no running around trees in the snow-clad Dalhousie. The
background score works well and gives you the feeling that you are
watching a Hollywood classic. The set design, costumes and production
are near-perfect. So what goes wrong?
The movie might be set in
the ’50s but giving the pace of that era to the story might not work
with the younger audience, who will be yawning, and yearning for speed
to the proceedings. Also, (spoiler ahead) people are now getting tired
of seeing a ‘hatke‘ end to every movie they watch these days. Time for
some ‘And they lived happily ever after’ films to make a comeback.
Lootera
will stay with you if you like to see classic, slow romances that take
time to unfold and invariably have some tragic element. If you don’t
like such films and prefer the gloss and glamour of say, Yeh Jawaani Hai
Deewani, then skip this one.
Rating: 3 out of 5
.jpg){kind=spacer}
