Badrinath Ki Dulhania (2017) Review!!

Synopsis – Badrinath Bansal from Jhansi and Vaidehi Trivedi from Kota belong to small towns but have diametrically opposite opinions on everything. This leads to a clash of ideologies, despite both of them recognizing the goodness in each other.

My Take – Over the years we have witnessed a couple of screen pairings, like Waheeda Rahman – Guru Dutt, Vyajantimala – Dilip Kumar, Nargis – Raj Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit – Anil Kapoor, Juhi Chawla – Aamir Khan, Kajol – Shah Rukh Khan and in recent years Deepika Padukone – Ranbir Kapoor, who have managed to rise above the screen play and provide the film the much needed push especially when the writing of the film lingers herby catching the audience’s much needed attention to move towards their nearest local theatre. Keeping that in mind, it seems Bollywood monarch Karan Johar is out to make his very likable & talented protégés Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan as the next gen cutesy on screen pair by reuniting them for the 3^rd time in this Dharma Production. Helmed by 2014’s Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania’s writer-director Shashank Khaitan, whose earlier film was powered by Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt’s incredible, crackling chemistry and a rehashed idea done well. It was a sweet film at best, a decidedly desi, middle-class take on Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge set in the Indian heartland, a familiar tale of young love and parental opposition, but elevated by the sheer likeability of its two leads and the fact that they played off each other so well. From the trailers, one might feel are we going to see a revamped Humpty Sharma ki Dulhaniya? Luckily, except for some familiar faces from the earlier film, this 2^nd installment of the Dulhania franchise is thankfully an altogether new film where writer-director Shashank Khaitan takes down the flashiness a notch in exchange for an attempt at some well-meaning social commentary. As expected, the results are mixed, but considering the usual run-of-the-mill Bollywood romcoms we are offered, this film at least tries to be original in its content and considering Indian society’s still back ward thinking mentality, the issue presented in this film is quite relevant.

The story follows Badrinath Bhansal aka Badri (Varun Dhawan), the younger son of a patriarch money lender (Rituraj Singh) who rules his family and many others with an iron fist in the city of Jhansi. The older Bhansal subscribes wholeheartedly to the age-old notion of sons as family assets, daughters as liabilities, and dowries as down payments for marriage. He even ensures that his older son Alok (Yash Sinha) leaves his girl friend marries his choice Urmila (Shweta Basu Prasad), a highly educated girl. Ambivalent toward the same antiquated beliefs, Badri himself, a big-hearted yet somewhat bumbling goon for his father lives his life within the same constraints, until he meets and immediately falls for the college-educated, forward-thinking girl from Kota, Vaidehi Trivedi (Alia Bhatt), the younger of two daughters of a middle-class family headed by the long-suffering simpleton (Swanand Kirkire) who just wants to fulfill his loving duties towards his daughters by getting them good grooms. With the help of his friend, Somdev Mishra (Sahil Vaid), Badri decides to pursue her and give into Vaidehi’s wishes before marrying her, not knowing about Vaidehi’s reluctance due to her ambitions of finding a job and escaping the oppressive mindset of her community than landing a husband her middle-class parents can’t afford. At first glance, the plot has all the ingredients of the usual boy-meet-girl setup. But despite its predictable ending—this is definitely one of those familiar stories in which the outcome is obvious in the first 15 minutes— the film turns some seemingly cliché beats inside out, including the classic (and highly disturbing) Bollywood trope of a lovesick boy shamelessly chasing his object of affection. Badri does pursue Vaidehi to stalker extremes, but Vaidehi firmly maintains the reigns of the relationship, dismissing his advances with vague amusement. Even when she appears to give in to him, her ulterior motives confirm that she, not Badri, retains control over her choices. And in a refreshing tonal shift from the usual Bollywood routine in which the heroine eventually realizes her mistake in turning down the male hero, much of this story focuses on Badri’s arc as — while watching Vaidehi’s live her life on her own terms — it dawns on him that being with her would be more his good fortune than hers. This film isn’t merely interested in being a breezy rom-com, which admirably, it’s also a critique on the dowry system, and makes a strong case for a woman’s right to choose career over marriage. Like earlier film, to which this is a sequel in spirit, Shashank Khaitan’s film examines how the emotional reverberations of failed and thwarted marriages are felt by the entire family over time. This is a tricky film to unequivocally praise or damn. There’s frankness to its discussions of dowry and the diminishing of women’s rights after marriage that’s heartening to see in a mainstream film. On the other hand, there isn’t enough dramatic heft in it to justify the kidnapping-as-plot-device sequence or the threats of honor killing that issue from Badri’s father.

Director Khaitan would probably argue that this is how things are in real life in Uttar Pradesh (and pretty much everywhere else in India). Yet, if it were real life we were talking about, Vaidehi probably wouldn’t have emerged from that trunk alive. The film talks significantly about the dowry system in a very realistic setting. The moments are subtle and natural that they perfectly reflect the regressive thoughts in the society. Khaitan’s writing, with its UP inflections and inexact translations are quick and funny, words that might also be used to describe Dhawan and Bhatt and Sahil Vaid as Badri’s best friend. The first half rides majorly on humor and works most of the time. The second half gets slowed down owing to the seriousness of some situations. The second half is a shade clumsier than the first, and the Singapore part is rather repetitious, but the film holds thanks to Khaitan’s wonderful lines and the feel-good novel situations that he works into the drama. This one’s a vast improvement on his successful debut film. The comic Q and A sessions between Varun and Alia are a letdown taking away the naturality the film is trying to establish. And while humor is mostly used to great effect, there are instances in which Khaitan seems to employ it as a tool to dilute some of the film’s more radical or potentially uncomfortable moments; these include a scene that addresses male rape, which is brushed off as laughable after Vaidehi emerges as a bigger hero than Badri. While Khaitan’s dilemma is understandable, scenes like these may raise questions about his commitment to film’s underlying themes. The film shares its highs and lows with Khaitan’s charming debut Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania (2014) – it has an excellent lead pair whose mutual sparks can set water on fire, brilliantly written conversational humor, and an unmistakable feel for the throbs and tugs of young love. When together, Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt can recite the English alphabet and it will not matter. Varun Dhawan as Badri will remind you of the best of both Salman Khan and Govinda. Varun steals the show from every other character in the film and trust me there are quite a few who stand out. He is so spot-on in his role and also convincing in the portions where he becomes temperamental after Vaidehi dumps him. He plays the part with the just the right goofiness and innocence, and wins you over completely. Alia Bhatt plays Vaidehi with honesty and vulnerability that makes it hard to hold a grudge against her. Extremely confident and impeccable, Alia is rapidly proving to be one of those formidable talents who are largely the same yet manage to be convincingly different in every character and film. In a supporting role, Sahil Vaid is fabulous in both comic and emotional sequences. Yash Sinha, Shweta Basu Prasad, Swanand Kirkire,, Rituraj Singh, Sukhmani Lamba and Aparshakti Khurrana play their parts well. Gauhar Khan is wasted. Amaal Mallik, Tanishk Bagchi and Akhil Sachdeva do a good job on the soundtrack except for the rehash of the popular 90s song Tamma Tamma which is just painful to watch & hear. On the whole, ‘Badrinath Ki Dulhania’ is breezy entertainer that despite a few glitches is a good mix of humor, emotions and a social message.