Gehraiyaan Movie Review: Deepika Padukone Dives Deep And Emerges With A Poetic Performance

Story

Alisha (Deepika Padukone), a yoga trainer believes that she is in shambles, both in personal as well as on professional front. She is running low on luck in finding an investor for her fitness app and her six-year-long relationship with her boyfriend Karan, a struggling writer, too has hit a boredom wall.

Just when she convinces herself of her monotonous life, there enters her stinking rich cousin (Ananya Panday) and her hot-shot fiancé Zain (Siddhant Chaturvedi). Within no time, Alisha and Zain find themselves inexplicably attracted towards each other and begin a torrid love affair, keeping their respective partners in dark.

Amid their romantic rendezvous and passionate love-making sessions, the duo bond over their troubled past; unaware of the storm waiting to catch up with them.

Direction

While Shakun Batra's last outing Kapoor & Sons revolved around two estranged brothers and their dysfunctional family, his latest release Gehraiyaan deals with the intricacies of modern day relationships with infidelity as its central theme. The filmmaker dips his brush in grey to sketch his two central characters- Zain and Alisha, and takes us through a maze of emotions like love, lust, pain, jealousy, betrayal, greed and rage. Batra's storytelling is intimate and one can't ignore the influence of Wooden Alley's Matchpoint.

In Gehraiyaan, Shakun steps away from the concept of monogamy and dives deeper into the human psyche to create a dark, gripping watch. In his film, there are three characters who feel they are 'stuck' in life. How they each deal with this conflict creates a ripple effect in the lives of people around them.

However this domestic noir also has its set of flaws. One wished that Shakun and his team of writers Sumit Roy, Ayesha Devitre and Yash Sahai had fleshed out some more details for Ananya Panday's Tia and Dhairya Karwa's Karan. The duo start on a promising note only to wither off in their later portions since their characters lack depth.

Another major thing which sticks out like a sore thumb is that Shakun barely depicts the emotional intimacy between Alisha and Zain in his film. Barring a scene or two where we see them spilling their deepest secrets to each other, their relationship is mostly confined to the physical aspects. Because of this, when the narrative moves ahead and their characters grow a bit darker, it leaves you a bit perplexed when it comes to 'love' in their relationship. Also, certain creative liberties that Shakun takes in the pre-climax act kills some of the fun.

Performances

Deepika Padukone takes away your breath with her portrayal of Alisha, a likable and pleasant girl who struggles to deal with the ghost from her past. She is calmer on outside, but there's a whirlwind of emotions waiting to explode inside her. Be it her shaky breath and the trembling hands during an anxiety attack or rushing into her lover's arms each time they meet, it feels like the actress literally 'lives' that situation in her head for that time being. Gehraiyaan is definitely one of Deepika's most profound works so far. The actress delivers a bravura performance as the fragile, disturbed Alisha with daddy issues.

Sharing spotlight with her is her co-star Siddhant Chaturvedi who is simply irresistible as the smooth-talker and flirtatious Zain. The young boy springs a surprise and pulls off the various shades of his character with maturity.

His on-screen chemistry with Deepika Padukone oozes plenty of sizzle which is perfectly defined by the lines, "Lo kashtiyan hamari yoon takra gayi, lehar lehar dono ka dil besafar, besafar besafar, Haan doobey haan doobey haan doobey, Ek dooje mein yahan."

Ananya Panday delivers a likable act out of what's offered to her. Except a scene or two, Gehraiyaan barely offers her a chance to tap into her potentials. The same holds true for Dhairya Karwa who is affable on screen, but is simply reduced to a guy suffering from writer's block.

Rajat Kapoor and Naseeruddin Shah make a mark in their respective roles.

Technical Aspects

Kaushal Shah deserves a pat on his back for his impressive camera work. His visuals are strikingly beautiful and it's interesting how he makes use of sea tides to depict the changing equation between Alisha and Zain in the initial portion. Nitesh Bhatia's editing works in favour of the film.

Music

Gehraiyaan has some refreshing tunes to offer. If 'Doobey' makes you float in the air with its addictive lyrics and groovy music, the title track is some food for thought for the messed up souls. 'Bekaboo' makes for a pleasant hear.

Verdict

During an emotionally vulnerable moment when Alisha confides in Zain that she doesn't want to get 'stuck' like her mother, he tries to put her fear to rest and advises her by saying, "You just got to make different choices." In real life, popular novelist Graham Brown too says, "Life is about choices. Some we regret, some we're proud of. Some will haunt us forever. The message: We are what we choose to be."

Amidst the winds and storms, Shakun Batra's Gehraiyaan reaches the shore with minimal damage; all thanks to Deepika Padukone's nuanced act. While this relationship drama might not be everyone's cup of tea, you can 'choose' to give it a chance if you like to look at relationships without rose-tinted glasses.