A Salman Khan film that’s much more than being just another mindless entertainer
A Potpourri of Vestiges Review
By Murtaza Ali Khan
Featured in IMDb Critic Reviews
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| Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015) - By Kabir Khan |
Our Rating: 6.5
IMDb Ratings: 7.2
Genre: Drama
Cast: Salman Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Kareena Kapoor Khan
Country: India
Language: Hindi
Runtime: 163 min
Color: Color
Summary: A young mute girl from Pakistan loses herself in India with no way to head back. A devoted man with a magnanimous spirit undertakes the task to get her back to her motherland and unite her with her family.
Bajrangi Bhaijaan is the latest offering from filmmaker Kabir
Khan whose previous projects include films like Kabul Express (2006) and NewYork (2009). Bajrangi Bhaijaan is Kabir’s second collaboration with actor
Salman Khan following the 2012 blockbuster film Ek Tha Tiger. Bajrangi
Bhaijaan also stars Kareena Kapoor and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in pivotal roles. The
movie revolves around a six-year-old mute Pakistani girl 'Munni' who accidentally gets
lost in India and a God-fearing simpleton named Pavan, aka Bajrangi, who takes
it upon himself to unite the girl with her parents back in Pakistan.
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| Salman Khan as Bajrangi and Harshaali Malhotra as Munni |
For the uninitiated, British India was partitioned into two
separate states, India and Pakistan, back in 1947 as per the Mountbatten Plan. Till
date the relationship between the two countries, despite numerous diplomatic attempts,
continues to remain hostile. Bajrangi Bhaijaan, with its themes of love and
brotherhood, can be seen as an attempt on the part of the Indian film fraternity
to bring the two estranged countries together. Perhaps, the greatest divide
between the two nations is religion. Bajrangi Bhaijaan’s depiction of a devout
Hindu, a disciple of Lord Hanuman, who jeopardizes his own life to rescue a Muslim
girl hailing from Pakistan, is certainly targeted towards bridging this great
religious divide between India and Pakistan.
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| Salman Khan and Kareena Kapoor in Bajrangi Bhaijaan |
With the Pakistani Censor Board having already cleared the film
for the release, we can expect Bajrangi Bhaijaan to spread its message of peace
and love across the border as well. Whether the movie actually succeeds in bringing
the two countries closer remains to be seen. But, for now, we all ought to admire the film as a great reminder that no barrier is strong enough to hold the people's will for too long; sooner or later, it must go down like the Berlin Wall. In Bajrangi Bhaijaan, we get to see a very different
Salman Khan—a marked departure from films like Dabangg (2010) and Kick
(2014) in that there is more realism and less histrionics. One of the major side-effects
of stardom is that it can make a person lazy and predicable. Of course, it
makes little sense to try out new things when one can still make the mark with
minimal efforts. The problem is that laziness and predictability can cost
dearly in a longer run. It appears that Salman Khan finally took cognizance of the
growing need to get rid of the predictable elements in his act. And, it seems
to have paid off really well.
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| Salman Khan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in Bajrangi Bhaijaan |
If Salman Khan’s character ‘Bajrangi’ is the story’s hero then
the journalist character ‘Chand Nawab,’ brilliantly essayed by Nawazuddin
Siddiqui, has to be our deus ex machina—an event or character introduced into a story
to resolve seemingly unsolvable problems. Siddiqui’s character enters the story
in the second half and repeatedly bails Bajrangi and his little travel
companion out of impossible situations. It can be seen as an interesting
parallel to the Hindu mythological tale of Lord Rama wherein Rama succeeds in rescuing
his abducted wife Sita from the clutches of the demon king Ravana with the
timely assistance of his ardent devotee Hanuman—the ultimate deus ex machina. In
the movie, Bajrangi is the devotee of Hanuman and the timely help comes from Chand
Nawab.
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| A Still from Kabir Khan's Bajrangi Bhaijaan |
Overall, Bajrangi Bhaijaan comes across as a perfect summer blockbuster
and has all the ingredients to entertain the audiences of all age groups. The
movie carefully avoids touching upon the core issues which still remain a bone
of contention between India and Pakistan. Bajrangi Bhaijaan, like most commercial
offerings from Bollywood, relies heavily on time-tested gimmicks which makes it somewhat predictable. Salman Khan
over the last half a decade has given us films that have rarely been devoid of
style and hard hitting entertainment. But most of those films lacked in terms
of storytelling. Bajrangi Bhaijaan is certainly an exception; it is a rare Salman Khan film that relies heavily on its plot. Yes, it will still require
you to suspend your disbelief. No, it is not a kind of film that will make a
film connoisseur feel proud of Hindi cinema. But, loaded with emotions and
stashed with a few delightful moments of Bollywood-esque magic realism, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, despite its flaws and weaknesses, does come across as a film that
millions of Salman fans truly deserve and desire. Here is a Salman Khan film
that’s much more than being just another mindless entertainer. A must watch
for Salman admirers and movie-buffs in general!
Readers, please feel free to share your views/opinions in the comment box below. As always your feedback is highly appreciated!
References:
1). IMDb
2). Wikipedia
Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015) Trailer
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People who liked this also liked...
Very nicely written and expressed... I luved ur review.
ReplyDeleteThanks Bindu... glad you liked it! :-)
ReplyDeleteHave never been a Salman Khan fan but after reading your review might just go and see it. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteEid Mubarak to you and yours!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the review. I was just seeing on the news that how the movie is being appreciated by viewers. I am definitely watching it.
ReplyDeleteKishor Kr
www.zigverve.com
I look forward to your thoughts on the film! :-)
ReplyDeleteDo share your thoughts on the movie! :-)
ReplyDeleteSure, I would.
ReplyDeleteThanks for writing about it so promptly. I hope I have the time to watch it.
ReplyDeleteHe has proved his critics wrong.. Reminds me of his acting in tere naam.. Well done bhai.. Tremendous acting... U kept It very simple n sober n with Bajrang Bali's grace it will break all records Inshallah..
ReplyDeleteNawaaz as usual flawless once again...
I hope you do find out the time for this! :-)
ReplyDeleteEid Mubarak to you too! :-)
ReplyDeleteWell said... he did prove his critics wrong, just like he did in Tere Naam!
ReplyDeleteReminds me of Sanjay Dutts departure from violence to romance in Saajan! Good review.
ReplyDeleteYou have made quite an apt comparison... I am glad you liked the review! :-)
ReplyDeleteWell, first of all let me thank you for sharing yours candid thoughts in such great detail! To answer your first question, I took about a three-hour break before actually starting with the review. I too was deeply touched by the movie and so the bias was obviously there but having said that I could see the movie's weaknesses and strengths with great clarity.
ReplyDeleteI am with absolute agreement with the other things that your have mentioned about Bajrangi Bhajaan. Like yourself, I too am neither a fan of Salman nor Kabir. But, that doesn't mean that I will not appreciate it if they deliver something good. So, you see, at the end of the day what matters is the end product and not those who produce it.
P.S. No, it's not the longest comment by far! :-)
I watched Bajrangi Bhaijaan, I am very like the quit girl Harshaali in this movie she have no any dialogues but her innocent acting is feel to my heart.. very nice movie..
ReplyDelete#justmoviez @Just Moviez
Thanks
www.justmoviez.com
Nawazuddin was at his best in such a short role
ReplyDelete