That #SalmanKhan plays Pawan Kumar Chaturvedi, (the pun on his being a devout Hanuman bhakt, obvious, like everything else about the film), who is something of a simpleton, someone who takes an eternity to finally clear his graduation exams, helps!! Salman fits the part of the somewhat slow, but large heart-ed benevolent small town boy to a T!!
and i am saying that tongue in cheek!
He is befriended for this obvious goodness by a little Pakistani girl lost in India. Pawan true to form, from the #Dabang character who "Ek baar coommitmnent karne ke baad hum apnee bhi nahin sunte hain" takes it upon himself to unite her with her family though he possesses neither a passport nor a visa and nary the means to do so. Well Salman is the super hero, aided by the Lord Hanuman who he believes will help him with every difficulty. The film like all the superstar's films, asks for a willing suspension of disbelief and and a willingness to sit back and enjoy the star's charisma, on ample display on the screen!
The man who does help him in Pakistan inaccessible to Bajrang Bali a land populated with disbelievers , is the highlight of the film, the journalist Chand Nawaz, played brilliantly by #NawazuddinSiddique, who lights up the screen every time he makes an appearance. The little girl #Harshali is sufficiently cute and adequately competent, #Kareena has little to do, except look good, which she does, with aplomb.
The great twist in Bajrangi Bhaijaan is in how it renounces the masala formula of good-versus-evil, especially given its incendiary plot built around hostile neighbours. This is no Gadar, and the Pakistanis are not the Enemy. One of them is Chand Nawab (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), a reporter who helps Pawan. Just how good is this actor! He can be subtle. He can be loud. He can play serious. He can play the fool. He can sell punch lines with the best of them. (Just wait till you hear him address Pawan as “Begum.”) Chand is a journalist and he’s trying to sell the Pawan-Munni story to Pakistani television channels, but no one is interested. He tells Pawan, wryly, that it’s easier to sell hate than love. That’s what Anil Sharma did, with Gadar. Kabir Khan, on the other hand, chooses love. There are Rajkumar Hirani levels of goodness in this movie. (And a bit of his sly satire too. When Pawan says Hanuman will help him, Chand asks, “In Pakistan too?”
#KabirKhan, leaves it to the charisma of the superstar to rake in the mullah, which I believe is happening, much to the producers satisfaction. The films seems to ramble on,its trajectory obvious,it could have done with a few effective cuts.however this is a focused film,the romance dealt with quickly and effectively to concentrate on Munni and Pavan. even so its a wee bit long for the simple story it is telling.
The only thing one takes away from the film is the fact that the message is one of peace, peace between the two peoples of India and Pakistan, divided by what is essentially an artificial boundary. 'Mohabbat bechna bahut mushkil hai, nafrat aaraam se biktee hai',Chand says. There are a few nuances, like the atypical Maulwi, who breaks the steoreotype of dogged dogma and choosed to side with goodness, at considerable personal risk. However, the film by and large is pretty straight forward and on the surface. The second half perceptibly better than the first.Salman delivers a Salman Khan film, nothing less, nothing more, with Nawaz ud Din as the saving grace. the music too is forgettable , a few frames from Kashmir enthrall.
Still wishing I had gotten to see Massan!
Vinny
27/715
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