Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani Review: Alia Bhatt-Ranveer Singh’s film has romance, emotions, drama and to top it all logic; Karan Johar understands cinema and his audience

Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan, Shabana Azmi, Tota Roy Chowdhury, Churni Ganguly, Aamir Bashir and others

Director: Karan Johar

Writers: Ishita Moitra, Shashank Kaitan, Sumit Roy

Language: Hindi

Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Let me begin by saying Karan Johar and the team of Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahani proved me wrong. The film is nothing like the trailer. Honestly, I was extremely disappointed after watching the trailer but the film is full-on entertainment. Karan Johar is in his element and with the film, he has once again reflected his incredible vision and understanding of cinema.

After watching the trailer, I thought to myself that the film will be just like any other romantic-family drama, but I am pleasantly surprised and in awe of the hard work put in by every actor.

Chiffon sarees, rich families, grand sets, family values, romance, emotions, tragedy, heartbreak, matching flashy clothes… Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani is your perfect Karan Johar film. Marking Karan Johar’s return to direction after seven years since Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, the film reflects KJo’s growth as a filmmaker. He has highlighted several issues we face without being too preachy.

Spoiler Alert!

The film begins with a narration by Rocky Randhawa (Ranveer Singh) describing his family. He is a rich brat who is hopelessly romantic. We are introduced to Grandmother Dhanlakshmi (Jaya Bachchan), who is trying hard to rule the house. Dharmendra has his own way of charming the audience. Kshitee Jog is playing Rocky’s mother while Aamir Bashir is essaying the role of the father.

Cut to the next scene, we see Rocky at a party, dancing his heart out in his jazzy and blingy clothes. However, as soon he sees Jaya Bachchan at the party, he gets scared and runs away. He loves dancing but his family is against that. The song features Varun Dhawan, Jahnvi Kapoor, Sara Ali Khan, and Ananya Pandey.

Dharmendra stood out for me – he didn’t have many dialogues and has a habit of forgetting things but whenever he spoke, he either made the audience laugh or cry. That’s the power of a good actor. Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani is also a tale of a broken family.

Rani Chatterjee (Alia Bhatt), on the other hand, is introduced in a scene where she is schooling a politician on rape cases in India. From the very beginning, we are introduced to two contrasting families of the Randhawas and Chatterjees.

The plot of the film is pretty much given in the trailer –  It revolves around Rocky and Rani, whose love story begins when they are trying to reunite their respective grandparents Kanwal (Dharmendra) and Jamini (Shabana Azmi), who had an affair in 1978 that ended owing to their marital status.

While the old romance is reviving, Rocky and Rani decide to switch households for three months and live with each other’s families only to realise things aren’t as easy as they may seem. Some may argue that this is unrealistic and we’ll agree, but the film highlights so many issues that the backdrop feels perfect. Karan Johar has reflected on almost everything that he must have gone through or believes in. Rocky’s sister played by Anjali Anand is a chubby woman who is facing problems in getting married. People objectify her and treats her like a commodity. Isn’t that’s what happens in our society? Some may argue that women do not cover their heads in a Punjabi household, but they are forgetting to consider those who live in remote areas in India. They still follow such practices.

Rani’s family is well-educated and promotes art and culture, however, her father (Tota Roy Chowdhury), who is a beautiful Kathak dancer still faces judgments from the society that feels – ‘Dancing is not for men. It’s a girly thing.’ The film is beautifully breaking stereotypes. Karan Johar understands what the audiences are looking for and he has given them exactly the same.

The comic relief is the highlight – at no point, the film gets preachy, in fact, it says a lot without letting the audience know that they’ve been schooled.

Ranveer Singh’s monologue, in the second half of the film, shows how we unconsciously discriminate – We’ve been told since childhood ‘Chai peene se kale ho jaoge’ which signifies that black is not beautiful, similarly a fat person is referred to as Golu and let’s agree, we all know one such person in our lives.

Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani is a beautiful reflection of our society and its shortcomings.

A special mention to Churni Ganguly who plays Rani’s mother in the film. Her dialogue timings and screen presence make the film look even better. The writing is solid – Thanks to Ishita Moitra, Shashank Kaitan, Sumit Roy.

Verdict:

Ranveer Singh managed to spell his charm once again. He is outstanding, like a chameleon who can get into the skin of any character given to him. Alia Bhatt is a terrific and natural actor, without a doubt. Karan Johar has impressed me and made me fall in love with romantic films once again.