Nov 14, 2011 10:17 PM
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(Updated Nov 14, 2011 10:17 PM)
“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there*.” The film begins and ends with these brilliant couplets penned by Rumi, a 13th century mystic poet. As the film rolls on, you expect it to blow your mind away with some forceful performances, soul-stirring music, and a heartrending storyline. Alas, it fails in each of these departments! The movie as a whole just fails to pull the levers of your heart, and make it stop and listen to the sound and beauty of Rahman’s priceless music(which is supposed to be the liet-motif of the film). It does have its moments where you can sit by a haze of pure bliss and sheer talent, but these are few and far between, and ends before it can have a lasting impact!
The film introduces you to a gawky Janardan Jakar(Ranbir) strumming his guitar strings on the streets of Delhi, and being beaten up by the cops subsequently for creating a “ruckus”. Jakar is inspired by no one else than Jim Morrison who in the former’s words is someone who could have the crowds ranting and raving by a mere lifting of a middle finger. JJ aspires to be on the same music and crowd-pleasing wavelength as that of his muse. A friend and an advisor, reveals that in order to belt out soulful music, he has to necessarily go through the pangs of a heart-break. JJ takes him so seriously that he goes to the length of proposing a new hottie in the college(Nargis) only to witness a predictable upshot of a shark rebuke and rejection. Then he fakes a heartbreak to prove that he now has a reason for turning into a musician.
So, after all the staged fuss and palaver, JJ bonds with Heer, and realizes that she is not much of a ladylike dil todne ki machine that he had imagined her to be. Heer wants to explore all the untapped and forbidden things of life before heading off for an arranged marriage in Kashmir. This rings more than just wedding bells for us, since we know of a certain Simran(Kajol) too who had expressed such similar desires in DDLJ. So JJ becomes Heer’s partner in crime and tots up a to-do list of all the unthinkables for them to do. Some of them include taking several swigs of the desi daru and paying a visit to a sleazy movie show in one of the shabbiest corners of the city. The film shows the two of them coming closer as a result of the high-jinks that they experience together. However, neither of them are able to decipher or express their feelings for the other. Unlike Aditya Chopra’s hero, JJ doesn’t attempt to thwart the marriage and instead returns to Delhi where his family decides to throw him out of the house for some flimsy reason(and the director doesn’t bother to elaborate on it much either). He then makes a darjah* his temporary abode and this is where he learns about the effects that music has on cleansing a soul or rendering one happiness. The brillaint ditty“Kun Faya Koon*” is filmed admist the colors and vibrance of a Sufi ambience. This experiences changes JJ for life. We are then shown a few reels of JJ’s rise to stardom, but we do not completely feel this heady metamorphosis since the director doesn’t prefer to hover his lenses over these miniscule details. JJ also takes on the moniker of Jordon(a name that Heer had used while introducing him to her friends).
JJ bags an opportunity to go to Prague(where Heer is now settled) and reunites with his love. Over a few awkward moments, JJ proposes and even kisses Heer while the latter is confused if she is doing the right thing. However, JJ’s love only increases to the dizzying highs and he is torn apart when he has to leave Heer again(but not before conjuring up some melodramatic scenes). This portion resembles Ali’s previous film(Love Aaaj Kal) where the protagonist continues to love his ex even after the latter is married off, and wants to get her back in his life. However, this film doesn’t completely explain you why and when are these feelings developed between the two characters? The film even takes inspiration from Eric Sehgal’s Love story as it depicts the sad fate of the dying herione and undying love.
On the other hand, JJ is potrayed in a negative light following his numerious run-ins with the press(who try to intrude too much in his life). He even beats up the policemen in his angst and is labelled a criminal. One of the best scenes in the movie, is where you can see a pair of hands fitting in the words “Jordon negative” on an ad copy(showing how the music patrons are more concerned about cashing in out of JJ’s destructive potrayal). The other scenes that would move you and remain glued to your hearts are the ones that feature the late Shammi Kapoor. He is potrayed as a musician who thinks of JJ as an artist who cannot be tied down or caged.
So, quite predictably, JJ becomes a hit worldwide and his music appeals to the rebellious side of the audience. However, it is never shown how JJ is inspired to produce such musical gems and why he does it. It also doesn’t bother to explain why he is caught by some goons just before performing for a live audience abroad(the scene that the film starts off with). There is also a film journo who makes a news reel on JJ’s life even before he shoots to stardom(you fail to understand why would a scribe give so much importance to a rising star and go to the lengths of documenting his life!) The film zigs zags between numerous such scenes without explaining the logic or relation between them. Therefore, the movie confounds and confuses you to a point that you stop caring about the main characters.
The last few minutes are the most disspointing of the lot and even a brilliant juxtaposition of a burning guitar and pouring water(resembling JJ’s inability to douse the flames of his passion) is not enough to ressurect it. Also, you never understand why the music of the film is never highlighted enough(when it should have been represented with the elan or panache that is worthy of a music meastro like A. R. Rehman). The songs are cut short and in some cases played out in parts!
Ranbir Kapoor as the rockstar delights with his squealing fun and gauchiness as the young JJ and his transition into a lovestruck musician. You can read the sadness in his eyes and feel the emptiness in his heart in a few well-directed scenes. Nargis with her now trigger-happy and now-glum facial expresssions proves that she is nothing much to be written about.
Overall, Rockstar is one of the most dissappointing movies of the year. One would have expected this movie to stand out tall after a spate of directorial duds like Ra One, Bodyguard, and Mausam. However, even the three Rs(Ranbir, Rehman, and Rock music) couldn’t take the movie to a new level that you would have expected from a director like Imitiaz Ali.
