Ram Leela
DIRECTOR: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
CAST: Deepika Padukone,Ranveer Singh
CLASSIFICATION: TBA
RUNNING TIME: TBA
RATING: ****
WITH every film, director Sanjay Leela Bhansali (SLB) takes the audience’s expectations to a higher level. And the expectations of Ram Leela are as high.
The effervescent colours, the attention-grabbing visuals, the way the intense drama is ingeniously woven into the screenplay, the alluring soundtrack and the electrifying chemistry between the lead pair have caught the attention of one and all.
With Ram Leela, SLB, one of the finest storytellers of our time, is set to outclass himself… and prove the sceptics and cynics wrong, who may have felt he has lost his way while trying to court triumph.
You do know what to expect from an SLB film, since the director gives the right hints in the promos of his films. It’s no different with Ram Leela: SLB has stirred the audience’s imagination by trying his hand ata love story amid guns and roses.
Sure, SLB is inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, but he makes sure he narrates the love story of star-crossed lovers from warring families in his trademark individualistic style.
Set in Gujarat, Ram Leela is SLB’s most commercial film as a director and his best work so far. It’s the kind of film you carry with you. The high-octane drama, blazing guns, passionate romance, haunting melodies, the heart-melting emotions…
SLB is an exceptional director with a remarkable vision and Ram Leela is evidence of this. The film tells the story of Ram (Ranveer Singh) and Leela (Deepika Padukone). The hostility and resentment between their families is an open secret, but as luck would have it, Ram and Leela fall in love.
When the truth dawns upon the respective families, a storm ensues, their worlds collide and a bloody battle occurs. Can Ram and Leela carve their destinies amid abhorrence and slaughter?
Agreed, we have witnessed Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet adapted innumerable times in the past, but SLB makes sure of the execution of the written material. Also, the way the screenplay (Siddharth-Garima and SLB) progresses differs from similar storylines helmed by dream merchants of Bollywood. The unconventionality he brings to every sequence, the colours he infuses in his frames, the aggressive lingo his characters use, the passion and sensuality he brings about in his characters, Ram Leela not only has a spell-binding effect, but it takes you to an unfamiliar world absolutely.
You may have an inkling of the plot, but you definitely don’t know how SLB will give an altogether innovative twirl to the premise.
Celebrated for being meticulousness, SLB makes sure his vision of narrating a story belonging to two warring families is never diluted by unwanted sub-plots or characters.
One can gauge the premise at the outset, but SLB never loses the focal point or deviates from it till the culmination. What unfurls is certainly going to catch a lot of people unaware, for sure.
Yes, the fulm’s length could have been controlled, towards the latter reels specifically. However, it’s a minor hiccup when one looks at the kind of effort that has gone into making every frame come alive. One of the highpoints of Ram Leela is, without doubt, its musical score (SLB, again).
Known for delivering musical gems in the past, the soundtrack is mesmeric. Each of the songs befits the setting of the film, besides being seeped in melody. The fact that the tunes are on the loop says it all.
Lahu Munh Lag Gaya, Nagada Sang Dhol Baaje, Ishqyaun Dhishqyaun, Tattad Tattad, Ang Laga De and Ram Chahe Leela are sure-fire hits. Visually, too, each of those songs is distinctively resplendent, with the choreography catching your eye as well. The background score (Monty Sharma) is top notch.
The director of photography (Ravi Varman) captures SLB’s vision exquisitely and every frame has the unmistakable stamp of flawlessness.
The production design (Wasiq Khan) is striking.
The action (Sham Kaushal) is absolutely in sync with the demands of the script.
Who would have imagined Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone would set the screen ablaze when Ram Leela was announced? But the chemistry between the two is defining in every sequence, with the actors complemen- ting each other fantastically.
Ranveer, seen in a completely new avatar, had impressed in his earlier endeavours, but he outshines himself in this one. He has surfaced as a much better actor than he ever was, freeing himself of his inhibitions and experimenting with a role that is actually quite intricate. He is simply flawless.
This is Deepika’s year, for sure. Post Race 2, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and Chennai Express, Deepika pulls yet another ace out the deck this time.
Looking gorgeous as ever and cast in the most demanding role of her career thus far, she wins you over with an act that is unblemished.
Actually, the confidence she radiates while portraying this part makes you wonder if SLB and his writers Siddharth-Garima had penned this character with Deepika in mind. The audience is sure to go into rapture while watching Deepika.
Every actor in the supporting cast is simply wonderful while Priyanka Chopra sizzles in the item number.
On the whole, Ram Leela ought to be watched for multiple reasons: the electrifying chemistry between its leads, the strong dramatic content, the scintillating musical score, the violent streak in the narrative and, of course, Sanjay Leela Bhansal’'s execution of the material.
This is Bhansali’s most accomplished work of his career to date. It is a work of outstanding artistry. No two opinions about it.
This movie is a must-see and comes highly reciommedned. – bollywoodhungama.com