Rang De Basanti has got to be one of the best hindi movies i've watched so far, if not THE best!
To single out the reason for such a acclaim wouldn't be fair.
RDB has all the ingredients to make an evolutionary movie with good humor, novel narrative style and bold ending! I mean, evolutionary, because at its heart, the movie is about reflecting on the sacrifices of our freedom fighters & adapting it to the present…
British film maker Sue (debut by Alice Patten), inspired by her colonist-grand father’s diary lands in Delhi with the intent of making a movie about the lives of freedom fighters like Chandrasekhar Azad, Bhagat Singh, Raj Guru, Ram Prasad Bismil , Ashfaq Ullah Khan).
DJ (Aamir) and gang are a bunch of fun loving college guys who get cast as the revolutionaries! And what starts of as a comedy of errors moves into a surprisingly serious domain – but the narration is so smooth you don’t realize that till well into second half!
Beneath the youthful presentation and constant comic relief, the film presents a continuous thread showing the lives and sacrifices of the freedom fighters. Soon the link between them and our protagonists becomes apparent, and sets the tone for the bold stance of the movie!
Having set such a premise, I can’t perceive of any other ending for this movie that would that premise!
In fact, the narration of the movie is a novelty to Indian cinema. We have the voice-over narration of the Englishman who executed Bhagat Singh & Chandrasekhar Azad, the voice-over of Sue (his grand daughter who reads his diary) and a constant thread of past events juxtaposed with the present. This could work against the movie for viewers who want straight-forward presentation…
In Yuva, the different presentation style was responsible for a majority of the bad reviews. But then these movies aren’t masala movies made for the masses, either.
The bane of the Indian film industry is to equate quality with Box Office success!
As the Englishman narrates (when he encounters the inspired revolutionaries like Bhagat Singh and Azad) ''I wonder what makes ordinary people do extraordinary acts'', it sums up the jist of the movie.
Regarding performances, the cast has so aptly blended with the characters that its difficult to single out a performance!
Siddharth as the gritty Karan is a revelation. After his fame in South Indian cinema, he has announced his arrival in Bollywood!
The cast is huge: Includes Soha Ali Khan as Sonia, Sharman Joshi, Kunal Kapoor, Waheeda Rahman, Kiron Kher, Madhavan, (of course) Atul Kulkarni and a lot others.
Aamir’s comic timing provides great entertainment value to this film… The scene where the youngsters discuss India’s past and the future (where’s the present, huh!) in the posh lounge/bar is bound to be a favorite for years to come!
I’m sure the film wouldn’t have opened half as well if not for Aamir Khan’s presence!
Music by AR Rahman is of the kind that blends with the movie rather than break paradigms.
The Paatshala song is so apt for the setting, as is the Luka Chupp number. Rahman has become expert at handling songs with patriotic overtones! (Remember Yeh Jo Desh Hai in Swades?). I couldn’t remember a single song after the showing, but the mood inspired by each of the songs stayed on distinctly! What better tribute to the master composer!
The cinematography is free flowing and adds style to the movie!
Though the director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra deserves critical acclaim for unfolding the story, we have to give due credit to the story-script writer Kamlesh Pandey for his vision! The core idea of the film is too powerful to go wrong!
Talking about negatives, well, you could find a lot of negatives with the film if we look at it in the context of conventional cinematic values.
For e.g. the extremist path that the group treads towards the end could be seen as an exhaggerated reaction. The documentary film isn't shown to its completion, which could be interpreted as poor followup to that thread of the story, or plain poor editing...
But in the context of the movie as a whole and the point it tries to convey, these weren't really negatives in my point of view!
The second half starts to drag for about half hour after the intermission, which is the only negative I could list about this movie in my opinion!
In short, this is a must watch for enthusiasts of good cinema. Don’t look for conventional twists & turns, keep an open eye and you won’t be disappointed!
And sure enough, there could be some logical issues if you look too deeply- but there's only so much that can be shown in 2.5 hours!
What bowled me over about Rang De Basanti is not the oft-repeated message but the conviction with which it sticks to its stance right through to the bold ending!
And what's striking is that the characters are not superheroes inherently - they're just fun-loving guys as anyone else, who rose to the occasion.
If you’re looking for sugar coating and eye-candy material, watch out for the next Yash Chopra or Karan Johar offering!
I’d gladly give 5.5 stars for this venture!
I'm adding this after reading through other reviews, leaving comments, etc.
<SPOILER AHEAD>
Here’s my take on the climax. The movie was comparing the lives of the revolutionaries with the current day protagonists.
If Killing corrupt ministers were the key, then Bhagat Singh NOR the people in this movie would have surrendered!
The message is not to kill corrupt ministers! The message is that, they want people to know about the happenings, educate them to revolt against imperialism and corruption.
This is the reason for which Bhagat Singh and co sacrificed their lives!
(see the scene in the movie where they discuss whether to surrender or not).
And that is the reason why DJ and co surrendered at the Radio Station, sacrificing their lives...
So that people can know about what is going on. So that more people will take the route of IPS, IAS and fight corruption in the rightful way!
