Devdas and its near-twin, Parineeta

Here's what happened: I watched Devdas (Bhansali's version), and then a little while later I watched Parineeta. And I had a slight sense of deja vu. The stylistic feel of the movies was different (I really don't think anyone is quite like Sanjay Leela Bhansali, love him or loathe him), but there were definite echos as far as story goes. Turns out both movies are adaptions of novels by the same writer, Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. I wouldn't judge an author's entire set of works by only two, but these two certainly dealt in similar characters and situations. Both featured childhood next-door neighbors and friends who grow up together and in love with each other, and the complications brought by the differing social statuses of their families.

Film: Devdas

Year: 2002

Stars: Aishwarya Rai, Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit

Directed by: Sanjay Leela Bhansali

How I watched it: On DVD delivered by Netflix
Short answer to "Did I like it?": Yes. With an exclamation point. Yes!

I was, quite simply, mesmerized by this film. I have read complaints about it before and since watching it, and I can definitely see how the opulent sets and the heightened tone could be not to everyone's tastes, but it worked beautifully for me. (One peeve--people who complain that it was "unrealistic." That's like attending the opera and harping on how it's so unrealistic to think people would sing everything to each other, and what's with the horned hats? Bhansali doesn't seem to go in for realism. It's a choice, not a blunder.)

Every frame is shot with the maximum aesthetic effect in mind. The music is delicious and the dancing is simply stunning. Aishwarya and Madhuri are the best I've ever seen them, and SRK is made for the over-the-top melodrama that Bhansali relishes, but he's not obnoxiously frenetic here. The story is sad, but a very cathartic sad, a sad that feels like tears over beautiful poetry.

If you like beauty and spectacle in your Bollywood, this is a must-watch. And, in case it wasn't clear, well, it has Aishwarya Rai AND Madhuri Dixit DANCING. Even together, once.

* * * * *

Film: Parineeta
Year: 2005
Stars: Vidya Balan, Saif Ali Khan, Sanjay Dutt
Directed by: Pradeep Sarkar
How I watched it: On DVD delivered by Netflix
Short answer to "Did I like it?": Yes. Yes, I did.

I stayed up too late watching this movie. Apparently, it is dangerous to assume I will be able to turn off the movie at intermission and wait until the next day. It didn't happen. I was having too much fun staring at Vidya being all beautiful and riveting and Saif being all intense and brooding and Sanjay Dutt being all gentle and noble.

There are several similarities to Devdas here, but the music and dancing were far, far inferior. (Was there any dancing? Now I can't really recall. There was an interesting and fun item number by Rekha, sung to the tune of Louis Armstrong's "A Kiss to Build a Dream On." No, really.) However, there is much less altered reality and general over-the-top-ness, if that sort of thing bothers you (although the climax does have more than a touch of melodrama.) Also, this one has

 (SPOILER ALERT!) 

a happy ending. Sort of. Depending on whether you think Saif's character is basically a decent guy who just needed to get out from under his father's thumb and wake up to what was going on, or whether you think he is mostly a controlling and abusive whiner. I could go either way by the time the film wound to its close, so while I enjoyed it, the vacillating sense of whether or not I was happy with the outcome kept it from being a clear winner. Not that it really could have been any other way, as it turned out, but still.

I did absolutely love Vidya Balan in this. She was fabulous and flawless. I also loved her character, who could be sometimes strong and sometimes weak, firm as well as needy, clear-headed except when absolutely foolishly driven by emotion. You know, a complex, real human being.

When SRK Won Me Over- Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

As I mentioned in a previous post, the very famous Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, which launched Shah Rukh Khan's lover boy persona and remains at this writing the longest running movie in Bollywood history, only served to leave me slightly bemused as to the appeal of SRK. The movie was fine and he did have some moments that proved he knew how to turn on lovey-dovey charm, but mostly I spent the film thinking, "Really?" Why, I wondered, has this odd-looking man with his over-the-top "look at me!" acting style won the hearts of fans the world over?

I warmed up to him a little when watching Dil To Pagal Hai (The Heart is Crazy), which is an overblown 90s romance full of cheesiness and angst and fate and love and soul mates and Madhuri Dixit running through verdant green meadows and DANCING and some horrifically ugly dance costumes and I love it. I just do. I've heard this type of Bollywood movie described as "candy floss romance," which didn't mean much to me until I remembered that "candy floss" is the UK English term for cotton candy. It fits perfectly. There is nothing of nutritional value in cotton candy at all, but it certainly tastes delicious! And sometimes you just want to indulge.

I'm sure I will devote an entire blog post to Dil To Pagal Hai eventually, but for now, check out the rain song with all the adorable dancing children (watch the kids in the background closely starting at the 2 minute mark to see one little boy miss his cue in hilarious fashion):

But I still wasn't feeling the magic, although his chemistry with Madhuri Dixit is sizzling (Madhuri herself is fabulous).

Then, one night, I was scrolling through the offerings on Netflix Instant Streaming and came across Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (A Match Made by God). I have to admit, the fact that it starred Shah Rukh Khan was part of what made me pretty indifferent to watching it at first. But I thought I'd give it a go.

I planned to just watch it for a little while to check it out but watched the whole thing then and there. I suppose you should know before reading on that I cannot with any kind of objectivity speak of this movie. I love it that much. I love it so much that perfectly reasonable criticisms of people who don't like the movie make me irrationally defensive. I love it so much that it almost ties with Jab We Met, which was on such a pinnacle I thought no other Bollywood would touch it. And in that one viewing Shah Rukh Khan wormed his way into my heart and I totally got it. I don't even find him funny-looking anymore, but impishly handsome. That's the power of his charisma.

The story centers on Surinder Sahni, a bespectacled, quiet-spoken and perfectly ordinary middle class man who is invited to attend the wedding of his favorite university professor's daughter, Taani, played by Anushka Sharma.

He is charmed by her, and who wouldn't be? In fact he is immediately smitten. But she's about to be married and all, so... short movie, right?

No, of course not. I will warn you that the beginning here, which sets up the premise of the film, is an awful lot to swallow, at least for a Western audience. I always give this warning when recommending the movie, as well as assurances that just rolling with it is worth it! What happens is, as fate would have it, a tragic bus accident means the wedding doesn't happen. Suri's old professor friend, Taani's father, promptly keels over with a heart attack. On his deathbed at the hospital he calls Suri in and begs him to marry Taani so he knows she'll be taken care of after her dies. He begs Taani to marry Suri even though she is grieving, because he doesn't want to leave this world worried about her. Both of them agree, Taani to make her father happy, Suri ostensibly for only the same reason (but we know better).

So now Suri is in the unenviable position of being married to the woman he loves, but without her loving him back, and he is at a loss for how to go about changing this. He ends up having a friend change his look entirely and goes to see her at her dance lesson, but though she ends up seeing him there she doesn't recognize him.

Seeing his chance to spend some time with her with no baggage, he ends up playing a double role: her dance partner, Raj, and her husband, Suri.

Raj

Suri

A very sweet love story follows. I love it all. I love the music, and the song-and-dance numbers are very entertaining and sometimes touching. There's humor I actually find humorous, and Anushka Sharma's debut performance is quite lovely. Then there is SRK's performance. He is wonderful in this. The man can actually act! His reaction to the decision Taani eventually makes brings tears to my eyes every time. YES, I KNOW I'm sappy! And sure, the movie is kind of sappy. But it is wonderfully heartfelt and sweet. Also engaging, and technically well-made with brilliant colors and beautiful cinematography. And you should watch it. And if you don't like it DON'T TELL ME because I don't want to be disappointed in you. All right, fine, but while you're telling me, just know that I'll figuratively have my fingers in my ears while singing "Tujh Mein Rab Dikhta Hai" at the top of my lungs.

He just wants her love!