Rang Rang Barse !. Review on Rang De Basanti

Often times it occurs that a film doesn’t really need a story to work. Well written, fascinating characters, a few good twists, and classy execution is all a film needs to run.RANG DE BASANTI is a perfect example of this statement...

Amir Khan is a young man who continues to hang around in the University from where he has already passed out 5 years back! DJ is the official term to describe him. He feels its great to be a part of the University and have a great time with his University mates rather than facing the outer world as it hardly excites him. Other people in his gang are Sidharth Suryanarayan, Kunal Kapoor, Sharman Joshi, Atul Kulkarni and Soha Ali Khan, who loves to hang around inspite of being the lone girl in the group.Each of the people in the group has an identity of their own and has a different tory to narrate.Siddharth, a son of a noted industrialist; is emotionally cut-off from his rich family whereas Kunal is a middle-class Muslim boy who lives in the bylanes near Jama Masjid .He has a stable mind and thinks hard before he acts. A sensitive poet ,he is influenced by the Sufi school of thoughts. He is also sensitive to the needs of people around him. Sharman, has only one interest in life - girls, girls and more girls.Naturally, he is the most loved boy in the entire group.He is from a small town in Haryana who has moved on to Delhi University for further studies, against his parents wishes. He has his heart on his sleeve and no issues with anyone or even himself.Soha Ali is a tomboy who loves to be a part of the group and is meanwhile engaged to an air pilot Madhavan.Atul Kulkurni is a youth leader of a popular political party who believes in a certain ideology. He looks at the brighter side of politics and strongly believes that if used correctly, politics has all the power one may want to make things better! He comes across this group of boys who according to him is not living up to the Indian culture and this is how the conflict begins....These youngsters could be anyone of us today and their lives mirror the kind of lives the youth of today lead - namely a self centered and materialistic existence where ideas like patriotism and making a change are strictly the stuff history books are made of.

Actual drama takes place when London-based filmmaker Alice Patten, who stumbles upon her grandfather's diaries , lands up in India aspiring to make a film on Indian revolutionaries involved in the pre-independence struggle. Her grandfather was in the British police force during India's Independence Movement. Due to lack of funds, she ropes in students from Delhi University to act in her docu-drama. She approaches Amir Khan and company for her project, but they seem disinterested, as they cannot identify with a past they have only read about.What unfolds is the inspiration behind Alice's passion for bringing their story to the world. The twist in the tale is of course the fact that more than just telling the world, Alice's film makes Amir and his friends stop and stare at themselves for being the actual descendants of these great men and never recognizing and celebrating their courage and spirit. The film thus doubles as a narrative on the changes in perspective and values the young boys and girls acting in her documentary go through as they shoot for the film.Because soon the group realizes the value of not just the freedom struggle but even our culture, custom, rituals and how everything is still holding on inspite of the times in which we live in. Their journey takes them to Punjab and they start discovering things are in stark contrast to their metropolitan life.Because these are some things that are unseen, unheard of, unrealized by the current generation.And this is when different colors come to fore in 'Rang De Basanti'......The changes in perspective and values the young boys and girls acting in the documentary undergo as they shoot for a film forms the crux.

Rang De Basanti is a triumph for director Rakesh Mehra and his team of writers .The writer-director team have used a galaxy of actors as characters and interwoven them in the narrative in such a way that the film is thoroughly enjoyable yet hardhitting and thought provoking.Add to it a hit musical score (A.R Rehman), brilliant choreography and breath taking camerawork and the outcome is mesmerizing. But where the film actually scores are the dramatic moments – the relationships between the characters. The relationship Soha and Madhavan share, plus the friendship between Amir ,Kunal ,Siddharth and Atul , have been handled with extreme care. The film has comedy that clicks instantly with one and all, tender moments between the five principal characters which take film to a new zenith.

As a director, Rakesh has extracted commendable performances from the main cast, but the treatment of the subject is city-centric..As a writer, he must be complimented for tackling a theme that defies the norms of commercial cinema.Also he deserves full marks for not deviating from the main theme .There are references to every issue that one encounters in our daily routine. But, mainly, the film depicts the grit, determination and spirit of the common man, who is trying to survive in this ruthless world .

As a director Rakesh Mehra takes a giant stride from bland AKS.He shows sparks of brilliance in scenes that demand intensity and the film unfolds in a birds eye view as the viewer feels like they are actually part of that circumstance and it makes you think 'it could be my story'. The story unfolds at a slow pace, allowing for both adequate character development and some trademark Bollywood-style fun. Though the story is wafterthin ,it speaks more volume than recent disasters made in the name of entertainment!The film depicts a cynical point of view but it is the wake up call for gen x, who seem to have compromised with the two monoliths - the corporate and the family.

The film has several poignant moments, to start with. The best part is that the goings-on are very identifiable .The death of Madhavan and sequence thereafter , shocks the viewer completely. The handling of this sequence and prior to it,the sequence between Kiron kher ,Amir and Sue, keeps the viewer on tenterhooks.Post-interval too, a number of scenes have a lingering effect on the viewer even after the show has ended, especially the Delhi portions[Defence ministry] and climax:

A.R Rehman music is top class. The music composer is in command and belts out some winning compositions, which include the title track, 'pathsala' .Lyrics are wonderful and prove icing on the cake.The dialogues in the movie deserve a special mention as they are brilliant throughout . Cinematography is first-rate and the locales of rural India only add to the visual appeal.

The film does have its share of weaknesses too, but not that affect in changing the opinion of the viewer. The narrative which is devoid of clich tends to get heavy in the latter portions and lack of relief compounds the problem.Secondly , the film is slightly lengthy towards the second half and can do with trimming for a better impact.

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