By:
Taran
Adarsh,
IndiaFM
Friday,
November
09,
2007
Irrespective
of
how
his
films
fare
at
the
box-office,
you
cannot
shut
your
eyes
to
the
fact
that
Sanjay
Leela
Bhansali's
films
have
so
much
to
offer
in
terms
of
style
and
substance.
Alas,
Saawariya
is
all
style,
no
substance.
When
a
director
of
the
calibre
of
SLB
attempts
a
love
story,
you
expect
to
experience
the
various
emotions
that
you
generally
associate
with
romance.
Sadly,
the
emotions
you
experience
while
watching
Saawariya
is
sorrow
and
after
the
screening,
anguish.
With
splendid
backers
like
Hollywood
giant
Columbia/Sony
and
a
dream
cast,
Bhansali
falters
big
time
in
Saawariya.
It
doesn't
give
you
the
feeling
that
you're
watching
an
SLB
film
or
a
film
of
epic
proportions.
Instead,
you
constantly
feel
that
you're
watching
a
2-hour
play.
Dostoevsky's
short
story
WHITE
NIGHTS
may
sound
interesting
on
paper,
but
SLB's
adaptation
suffers
because
there's
not
much
meat
in
the
plot.
In
fact,
it
wouldn't
be
erroneous
to
state
that
Saawariya
ranks
amongst
SLB's
weakest
films,
as
far
as
scripting
is
concerned.
To
cut
a
long
story
short,
Saawariya
disappoints
big
time.
You
expect
the
moon
from
this
genius
film-maker,
but
you're
disheartened
as
you
watch
his
new
creation.
This
time,
hum
dil
nahin
de
chuke
sanam!
Saawariya
is
about
two
young
star-crossed
lovers.
A
musician,
Raj
[Ranbir
Kapoor],
is
certain
that
he
has
found
his
ultimate
dream
when
he
arrives
at
a
picturesque
town.
However,
destiny
paints
a
different
picture
for
Raj.
One
silent
night,
he
spots
a
mysterious
girl
draped
in
black,
standing
alone
at
a
bridge.
This
chance
encounter
introduces
him
to
Sakina
[Sonam
Kapoor],
a
shy
and
quiet
girl,
who
continues
to
intrigue
him.
Thus
follows
the
beginning
of
a
new
friendship,
where
Raj,
with
his
most
charming
ways
and
an
undying
spirit,
tries
to
win
Sakina's
heart.
Raj
is
unable
to
accept
her
haunting
past
and
their
friendship
pulls
him
into
a
whirlwind
of
desire,
madness
and
romance.
Saawariya
suffers
because
of
its
writing
mainly.
Let's
unravel
the
points
that
bother
the
viewer
no
end...
-
Which
part
of
the
country
is
this
straight-out-of-a-fairytale
town
located?
And
what
era
are
we
talking
of?
-
Even
if
you
subscribe
to
the
theory
that
it
was
love
at
first
sight
for
Salman
and
Sonam,
what
is
it
that
keeps
their
romance
going?
-
Why
does
Salman
disappear
suddenly?
Besides
his
name,
the
girl
knows
nothing
about
him.
Not
his
home/native
place,
work/profession/work
place,
relatives,
nothing
absolutely.
It's
like
falling
in
love
with
a
shadow,
isn't
it?
-
Why
does
Rani
Mukerji
abandon
Ranbir,
when
he
comes
knocking
on
her
doors
and
admits
that
he
wants
to
spend
time
with
her?
Why
does
she
lose
her
temper,
although
she
secretly
loves
him?
-
And
Salman
returns.
The
sequence
that
follows
and
the
culmination
to
the
story
leave
you
completely
disgruntled
and
perplexed!
|
Besides,
the
conversation
between
the
lead
pair
fails
to
involve
you.
Sure,
a
few
sequences
are
filmed
brilliantly,
but
the
impact
the
film
ought
to
create
in
totality
is
missing.
It
gets
verbose
and
boring
after
a
point.
What
makes
matters
worse
is
the
setting/ambience.
The
film
gets
monotonous
after
a
point,
visually
speaking,
since
it
has
been
shot
in
its
entirety
on
dark
sets.
You
long
for
some
visual
relief,
some
bright
spots,
some
sunshine...
Monty's
music
is
another
sore
point.
Sure,
a
few
songs
are
well
tuned,
but
the
everlasting
melody,
associated
with
SLB's
films,
is
missing.
You
hear
them,
savour
them
that
moment,
but
forget
all
about
them
once
the
movie
concludes.
Ravi
K.
Chandran's
cinematography
is
of
international
standards.
The
sets
look
imaginative,
but
as
mentioned
earlier,
you
yearn
for
a
visual
break,
a
different
colour.
As
a
storyteller,
SLB
is
letdown
by
his
own
writing.
Things
start
slipping
as
the
reels
unfold.
In
the
post-interval
portions,
you
fervently
pray
that
things
might
stabilize,
for
SLB
as
also
Ranbir
and
Sonam's
sake,
but
alas!
The
love,
passion
and
anguish,
the
hallmark
of
SLB
films,
is
clearly
missing
this
time.
Now
to
the
dream
launches!
Ranbir
Kapoor
is
supremely
talented,
no
two
opinions
on
that.
Yes,
he
looks
handsome,
but
what
you
carry
home
is
the
sincerity
in
his
performance.
If
that's
the
[high]
level
of
performance
in
his
debut
film,
this
lad
will
only
make
the
Kapoor
clan
proud
in
years
to
come.
It's
a
10
on
10
for
this
debutante!
Sonam
Kapoor
is
an
average
actor.
However,
her
role
doesn't
give
her
the
opportunity
to
display
histrionics.
She
looks
gorgeous
at
places,
but
plain
ordinary
at
times.
Age
has
started
showing
on
Salman
Khan's
face.
He
looks
like
an
old,
mature
man
in
this
film.
The
boyish
looks
have
gone!
As
for
his
role,
he
is
completely
wasted
in
this
hardly-10-minute
appearance.
Rani
Mukerji
is
first-rate.
Zohra
Segal
is
superb,
while
Begum
Para
is
hardly
there.
On
the
whole,
Saawariya
lacks
soul.
It's
SLB's
weakest
film
to
date,
in
terms
of
writing.
At
the
box-office,
the
film
will
collect
big
numbers
in
its
opening
weekend
due
to
the
Diwali
vacations
as
also
the
hype
surrounding
the
film.
But
the
cracks
will
start
showing
at
relatively
smaller
stations/single
screens
first
[where
the
practice
of
advance
booking
doesn't
exist]
and
at
big
centres
as
days
progress.
For
the
distributors,
they'll
have
to
rely
on
its
business
from
multiplexes
mainly.
While
the
business
from
multiplexes
at
Mumbai,
Pune,
Delhi,
NCR,
Kolkata,
Jaipur
and
South
will
be
impressive
initially,
there
would
be
a
big
gap
between
multiplex
and
non-multiplex
centres.
Overall,
disappointing
--
in
terms
of
content
and
in
terms
of
business
as
well!