Tag: Janhvi Kapoor

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Devara Part 1: Junior NTR and the action on high seas make it just about watchable

Koratala Siva’s pan India debut has majestic visuals and thrilling action set pieces but suffers on the account of an overstretched plot with no attention-grabbing twists. The ending has a Baahubali like twist but lacks the required impact

  • Starcast: Junior NTR, Saif Ali Khan, Janhvi Kapoor, Prakash Raj, Srikanth, Murali Sharma, Ajay, Tom Shine Chasko and others
  • Director and writer: Koratala Siva
  • Music and background score: Anirudh Ravichander
  • Producers: Nandamuri Kalyan Ram, Kosaraju Harikrishna and Sudhakar Mikkilineni
  • Production companies: NTR Arts and Yuvasudha Arts
  • Cinematography: R Rathnavelu
  • Running time: 2 hours and 57 minutes

The storyline of Koratala Siva’s Devara Part 1 focuses primarily on heads of two villages turning against one another. The story takes place on the border of Andhra and Telangana in an area called of Ratnagiri, also called as Erra Samudram (Red Sea), notorious for pirate operations targeting cargo ships. Junior NTR plays double role of both Devara and his son Vara. Saif Ali Khan on the other hand is the antagonist Bhaira. The ancestors of Devara and Bhaira had fought together against the British but now the situation is very different. Things take a drastic turn when Devara realizes that they have been smuggling dangerous weapons. These weapons are used by powerful people to wreak havoc. Devara takes it upon himself to put an end to these illicit operations going against his longtime ally Bhaira. He suggests an alternate method to earn income. Obviously, this doesn’t go well with Bhaira leading to a major rift. Most of the story is told from the perspective of Prakash Raj’s Singappa. After KGF 2 the senior actor once again plays the narrator.

Saif Ali Khan as Bhaira, nemesis of Devara

It goes without saying that Devara Part 1 relies heavily on the star power and the acting chops of Junior NTR. To the actor’s credit he pulls off both Devara and Vara in his charismatic style. As Devara he exudes both humility and destructive nature in equal measure. The character of Vara has a certain innocence and timidity unlike the father. Junior NTR showcases the variations in a wonderful manner. In the numerous interviews leading up to the movie Koratala Siva has emphasized on how Devara’s core is the concept of fear, and the negative things people are capable of doing in absence of fear. It has to be said that he has done justice to this.

Junior NTR in double role

Apart from Junior NTR what makes the film somewhat engaging is the vastly different moral compass of Devara and Bhaira. For example, there are scenes where Devara tries to make the people around him understand and differentiate between the courage required to live an honest life as opposed to the brute courage that can kill. The gradual rift between Devara and Bhaira has been brought out well.

Saif Ali Khan also delivers a powerful performance as the man who cannot see beyond greed. Yes, the characterization doesn’t have the hammer strong impact of Omkara but still the actor once again proves his capability in portraying negative roles.

The coastal setting has also been done well. Among the technicians R. Rathnavelu’s work deserves a specific mention. His cinematography is visually striking enhancing the movie’s large scale. Through his lens he does an effective job in capturing the various moods and emotions that both Devara and Vara go through.

Anirudh Ravichander’s background music elevates the action sequences particularly those of the father. The music except for Chuttamalle song comes across as major speed bump.

Coming to the flaws the big problem with Devara Part 1 is its overstretched plot. Since the mega success of SS Rajamouli’s Baahubali movies numerous directors have taken the path of splitting their movies into two parts. The first part being more of a buildup to the sequel. Devara Part 1 also suffers on account of this. Dividing the storyline into two parts feels very unnecessary as there isn’t that much meat in the story. The introduction of Devara itself takes 15 to 20 minutes after the movie starts by which time we lose patience. Those 15 minutes are taken up by Prakash raj and Ajay having a laborious conversation.

The plot is simplistic, tiring the audiences particularly towards the end. As viewers you know that Vara is not going to remain timid till the end and has his own hidden agendas. As a result, Singappa’s big reveal produces more yawns than claps. Like most pan India movies these days the movie is filled with many known supporting actors but there is little for them to do.

Janhvi Kapoor’s Tollywood debut is very disappointing to say the least. Her character Thangam is only seen fawning over Junior NTR’s Vara and pining for a strong husband. Thangam comes with a certain chirpiness that is meant to be a contrast to the film’s otherwise dark tone. But neither the characterization nor the performance lands. Janhvi Kapoor’s sensuous dance moves in Chuttamalle is the only noteworthy aspect of her rather insipid debut.

Janhvi Kapoor’s sensuous dance moves in Chuttamalle song

Devara part 1 is definitely a better outing for Koratala Siva in comparison to Acharya and chances are that die hard Junior NTR fans would definitely enjoy it. But in totality the film doesn’t come across as a memorable big event movie.

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Bawaal: This Mix Of World War II And Relationship Drama Has Its Moments And Flaws

Weak writing, morose tone of storytelling, and Janhvi Kapoor’s ineffective performance make things worse for the movie.

A downfall for Nitesh Tiwari!
Bawaal (Hindi)
  • Cast: Varun Dhawan, Janhvi Kapoor, Mukesh Tiwari, Manoj Pahwa, and Anjuman Saxena
  • Director: Nitesh Tiwari
  • Producers: Sajid Nadiadwala and Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
  • Music: Mithoon, Tanishk Bagchi, and Akashdeep Sengupta
  • Runtime: 2 hours 2 minutes
  • OTT platform: Amazon Prime

Nitesh Tiwari is a director who created a strong niche for himself with the likes of Dangal (2016) and Chhichhore (2019). Both films were not only box office hits but also got rave reviews. As a result, a lot was expected from Bawaal.

Unfortunately, his latest directorial doesn’t quite reach expectations in spite of a solid set-up.

Synopsis

The film begins in Lucknow with the heroic entry of the protagonist Ajay Dixit fondly called Ajju (Varun Dhawan). Looking at his swag and the adoration of the locals, viewers think that Ajju is doing a high-profile job.

But actually, he is a history teacher. However, it is quite a mystery how he got the job, given his ignorance of the subject and his lack of interest.

Ajay Dixit has a fake aura that he himself builds over a period of time. For him, image is everything.

In reality, Ajju is just a man-child and also a big liar. He marries Nisha (Janhvi Kapoor) but keeps away from her.

Nisha was a strong independent woman before the rushed marriage. She is now patiently waiting for her husband to accept her even after nine months of marriage.

Ajju never accepts Nisha as a wife because of her epileptic fits.

The self-made image of Ajju comes crashing down when he slaps a student in the class for asking a question about World War II. The student turns out to be the son of an MLA (Mukesh Tiwari).

Expectedly, all hell breaks loose and Ajju is temporarily suspended.

He comes up with a plan of travelling to the various locations in Europe which were ravaged by World War II and teach the students about the tragedy live.

In order to convince his father (Manoj Pahwa), Ajju plans to take Nisha along and paints a picture of wanting to repair his relationship.

His parents fall for this and give him the required money. The rest of Bawaal is about how Ajju undergoes a transformation and learns some important life lessons.

Positives

Before getting into the negatives, Nitesh Tiwari needs to be appreciated for how he uses World War II as a narrative tool.

He uses the horrors to make some important points. For example, in a scene, there is a clear message about the futility of war.

Similarly, in another scene, Nisha talks about the greed of Hitler and explains how not being content with oneself leads to disastrous consequences. 

The scene depicting the gas chamber incident is also quite poignant.

Mitesh Mirchandani’s cinematography in the World War II portions is successful in bringing alive the horrors of those times.

Performances

Of the two leads, Varun Dhawan is the clear winner. His character Ajju shares more than one similarity with Badri in Badrinath Ki Dulhania (2017).

In spite of the similarities, Varun does a terrific job of portraying the different shades. In fact, on many occasions, he seems to be acting on behalf of Janhvi Kapoor as well.

Janhvi Kapoor seems to have walked straight out of the sets of Mili (2022) and Good Luck Jerry (2022). It is puzzling how a supposedly strong woman would stay with a husband for nine months who insults her on every occasion.

Alia’s Vaidehi in Badrinath Ki Dulhania had far more spine, though she eventually ends up with Badri. But that was only after he changes, and becomes a better person.

Janhvi’s expressions hardly change. It looks as if she is forced to act.

Flaws

The biggest issue with Bawaal is the lack of a strong foundation for the love story between Nisha and Ajju.

The combination of weak writing coupled with Janhvi Kapoor’s ineffective performance makes things worse for the movie.

Bawaal also suffers from a morose tone of storytelling. There aren’t many light moments that make your heart flutter.

The lovey-dovey moments can be counted on the tip of the fingers.

The music composed by Mithoon and others isn’t bad but could have been much better, given the genre of the film. The need is for more soulful songs.

Final take

In a nutshell, Bawaal is a huge downfall for Nitesh Tiwari.

(Views expressed are personal.)

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Mili: An Engrossing Survival Drama Led By Brilliant Janhvi Kapoor

The genre of Survival drama lends itself to a vast array of human emotions. A film like Tom Hanks’ Cast Away is still considered to be a classic. Closer home Vikramaditya Motwane’s Trapped was a brilliant exploration of the loneliness in a big city, captured in a nail biting manner through the character of Rajkumar Rao. The protagonist in Trapped accidently jams himself inside his apartment. This year itself Fahad Fassil’s Malyankunju explored caste through the lens of a survival drama. Mathukutty Xavier’s Mili, a remake of his own Malayalayam film Helen is a wonderful addition to this list.

Structurally speaking Mili stays close to the original except for a few tweaks. For example in Helen the love interest of Anna Ben is a Muslim boy. Here the director makes Sunny Kaushal a Hindu boy who is supposedly from a different caste.

Milli starts off with establishing the daily routine of its lead character (Janhvi Kapoor).Before getting into the gritty space the director sets up the two important relationships in Mili’s life. One is with her father Niranjan (Manoj Pahwa). The other is with her boyfriend Sameer (Sunny Kaushal). Father doesn’t know anything about the boyfriend. Mili works as cashier at Take Out Mall in Dehradun. Before that Mili worked as a nurse. Milli has aspirations of going to Canada which the father doesn’t exactly approve of but he has no option. Things take a turn when father comes to know about Sameer and all hell breaks loose. The next night Mili gets trapped in the freezer room after a late night shift and no one has any idea of where she has disappeared. What follows is a race against time where the father and boyfriend unite together in search of the person they love. The director also explores the misogyny and the stereotypes attached to young working girls through Inspector Satish (Anurag Arora). 

The first half of Mili is mostly about setting the base and giving an insight into her personality. These portions may appear stretched but they play an important part in the scheme of things. The father and daughter bond gives the film some of its best moments. In both the emotional and lighter bits, the scenes between Janhvi and Manoj Pahwa have certain warmth that touches the hearts of the audience. Manoj Pahwa is one of those actors who can do a variety of roles, case in point being Article 15 and Mulk. Here too as father Manoj makes the audiences root for him. The desperation of a father is brilliantly brought out by the actor.

The love story between Janhvi and Sunny could have been better written; nevertheless their scenes are still good to watch. Sunny Kaushal has less to do but the actor still stands out with his amiable presence. He is successful in bringing out a boyfriend’s concern for Mili. Mathukutty Xavier does a wonderful job in showcasing how Milli’s father develops a fondness for Sameer in their search together for Mili.

For any survival drama the technical departments have to be very strong. Much like the original, here too the production design is one of the biggest assets of the film. Apurwa Sondhi does a brilliant job in converting the freezer room into a battleground. The shots of Janhvi trying to survive in the freezer room are sure to give goosebumps. The cinematography by Sunil Karthikeyan is also award worthy particularly in the freezer room portions.

The police characters may come across as generic particularly Anurag Arora who hasn’t got any redeeming quality but still his character of Satish is an important reminder of how certain stereotypes can become dangerous to young working women’s lives. Sanjay Suri as the other Inspector is the ante thesis of Satish and the actor infuses his part with the required righteousness. Jackie Shroff as the prisoner has a short cameo but his role is important to the proceedings. The senior actor makes his presence amply felt.

Now let’s move to the leading lady Janhvi Kapoor. Since Dhadak there has been a concrete effort on the part of Janhvi to prove her worth in the industry, as someone who is much more than just late Sridevi’s daughter. The actress has been making some right choices with Gunjan Saxena and Good Luck Jerry but with Mili she outdoes herself with a spectacular performance. She is particularly brilliant when the focus shifts to the freezer room. Janhvi makes the pain of Milli so real. The audiences almost pray for her to come out safe. Irrespective of Mili’s box office result there is no denying that the actress is far ahead of her contemporaries like Sara Ali Khan.

AR Rahman’s music isn’t of the popular type but the tunes go perfectly with the mood of the film, they complement the story. Tum Bhi Raahi is my most favorite song in the album. Sun Aye Milli is also a wonderful number. The background score, also composed by Rahman himself, is praise worthy.

Final word: Watch Mili even if you have watched Helen. It is a survival drama that makes you go through a roller-coaster of emotions. Janhvi Kapoor’s performance is the cherry on the cake.

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Good Luck Jerry: Janhvi Kapoor Leads This Delicious Crime Comedy

Siddarth Sengupta’s Good Luck Jerry is a delicious crime comedy that works both as a standalone film, and also as a remake of Nelson Dilipkumar’s Tamil classic Kolamaavu Kokila. Siddarth takes the beats of the original and adds his own touch. For those who haven’t seen the original, the story of Kolamaavu narrated the tale of a girl from lower middle class family played by Nayanthara. She lives a happy life with her parents. But things take a turn when her mother is diagnosed with lung cancer. Kokila tries her level best to get money for treatment but nothing works. Left with no other option she takes up the risky job of drug peddling without the knowledge of her parents. After a point she tries to get out of drug peddling but that is something which is easier said than done.

In the remake the director transports the plot to Punjab. Like Alia Bhatt in Udta Punjab Janhvi and her family are also Bihari migrants. You don’t have any father character unlike the original. There is a kind hearted neighbour Anil (Neeraj Sood). Anil has eyes for Jerry’s mother (Mita Vashisht). There is also Rinku (Deepak Dobriyal) who is in love with Jerry. I won’t elaborate further since the basic hook of the storyline is the same.

Janhvi is particularly good in the masala moments of the second half

Like the original the best thing about this too is the way the lead character has been written and performed. It would be unfair to compare Nayanthara with Janhvi given that Nayanthara is a more seasoned actress but to Janhvi’s credit she delivers a solid performance. She does justice to the character arc of Jerry, which goes from a petrified girl to eventually taking things in her own hands. Janhvi is particularly good in the masala moments of the second half. Her Bihari accent is mostly on spot. Deepak Dobriyal is another actor who stands out with his impeccable comic timing. His one side lover act leaves you in splits. His scenes with Janhvi and the family are thoroughly enjoyable.

There are many instances of subtle humour that keeps you involved. These scenes include Jerry smuggling cocaine in her dabba and hiding it beneath instant noodles, or even those ones when Jerry’s family transports kilos of drugs pretending to drive a cancer-stricken woman. Music is more functional by nature but the songs don’t disrupt the narrative.

The twists and turns also keep you engrossed. As a viewer you want Jerry and her family to get out of this mess much like the original. The villains headed by Sushant Singh are suitably menacing as per the requirements.

Janhvi does justice to the character arc of Jerry, which goes from a petrified girl to eventually taking things in her own hands.

The one thing which could have been better though are the scenes between Janhvi and Mita Vashishat. The scenes that they share are good but more focus could have been there on developing the bond between the mother and daughter.

Comparisons to the original aside, watch Good Luck Jerry for a much improved Janhvi and also the dark humour.