Karan Johar’s directorial debut Kuch Kuch Hota Hain released in 1998. 25 years and 7 feature films later, not much has changed in his stories or style of filmmaking. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though. While watching the latest film of his ‘Dharma’tic universe Rocky aur Rani (the actual name is too long), what struck me was the dichotomy of the constant feeling of ‘been there seen that’ and the ability of Johar to milk the most of this situation to craft a consistently engaging film. In that sense, familiarity is both the film’s biggest enemy as well as biggest strength.
Welcome to the world of Karan, ‘Jo-har’ film mein bahut paise kharch karta hain. One of Bollywood’s biggest ambassadors of extravagant filmmaking, he pays no heed to his detractors’ questioning and bashing of this splurging on costumes & songs, but instead revels in filling every frame of his films with affluence. Be it students showing off their Louis Vitton products in a college that looks nothing short of a palace, or a rich spoilt brat pursuing ‘Mere Baap ki Aarzoo (MBA) in London, or inserting an elaborate wedding sequence just for a short film, Johar spends more money on one song than Anurag Kashyap or Dibakar Banerjee spend on their entire film. It’s a crime to be poor in his world. In fact, Jaya Bachchan’s name in the film is ‘Dhan’lakshmi. No kidding! Now, if all of this financial freedom was used in vain, it would be unacceptable, but I have to give credit to Johar that his films are genuinely delightful to savor. He usually has a strong grip on his screenplay, which although is just recycling a similar story each time, is fun to watch for most part.
Rocky aur Rani falls in the same category. The first half is light, breezy that sails through mainly because of the electrifying chemistry between its leads. The makers do go occasionally overboard by relying so heavily on the nostalgia of old hit songs (like abhi na jaao chhod kar) that the novelty of the whole idea dries up quickly. There are, of course, the catchy songs and the grandeur at display which is captivating, but what lends the film the emotional heft in the second half is the way he sets up conflict between the main characters and sustains that tension between families and relationships.
At almost 3 hours of running time, Rocky aur Rani seldom feels boring, thanks to the perfect casting. Alia Bhatt in a saree and bindi can win hearts without even acting by just appearing on screen. It’s hard to think of anyone playing Rocky other than Ranveer Singh. Their solid performances help overlook many of the film’s inconsistencies. Except Jaya Bachchan, all the other actors complement each other and the story very well.
I am going with 3/5 for Rocky aur Rani. Amidst all the shine and glamour lies an emotional core that is unabashedly tapped into for good measure by Karan Johar. The film rarely soars like it should have, but I still recommend giving it a shot for a dose of good humor and wholesome entertainment.
