Producer: Bharat Shah
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali Starring: Shah
Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Madhuri Dixit, Jackie Shroff, Kiron Kher,
Smita Jaykar, Vijayendra Ghatge, Tiku Talsania, Milind Gunaji,
Ananya, Dina Pathak and Vijay Crishna Music: Ismail Darbar, Monty and Pandit
Birju Maharaj Lyrics: Nusrat Badr, Prakash Kapadia,
Pandit Birju Maharaj and Sameer
Genre: Emotional Musical Romantic Recommended
Audience: General
Released on: July 12, 2002 Approximate Running
Time: 3 Hrs, 15 Minutes |
Reviewed by: Narbir
Gosal Reviewer's Rating: 8 out of 10
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A
mystical experience courtesy of visually technical values and some
superlative performances. That is, the tragic love story of Devdas and
Paro, which has finally come to the screen in the form of Sanjay Leela Bhansali´s epic Devdas. Devdas is
this year’s biggest and most awaited film, and the expectations are sky
high. Sanjay Leela Bhansali´s knack for good story telling and an
amazing
star cast ensure that the film will take a great initial, but with such a
big budget one wonders if the film will be able to recover all costs. It
has been touted as the most expensive film to ever be made in Bollywood,
and it shows. Visually stunning, Devdas is full of colors and breathtaking
sets, which will keep your eyes glued to the screen.
Devdas (Shah Rukh Khan) and
Parvati (Aishwarya Rai) have
shared a special bond since childhood and is put to the test when Devdas
is sent away to England to further his studies. Parvati (or Paro) waits
for him and lights a diya signifying her undying love for Devdas. When he
finally returns Paro´s world lights up again. Their love is fully
supported by Paro´s mother Sumitra (Kiron
Kher) who is full of life and joy. However thanks to a
meddling sister-in-law (Ananya), the love story takes an
unfortunate turn after Devdas´ mother Kaushalya (Smita Jaykar) insults Sumitra and
refuses to accept Paro as her daughter-in-law. The hurt Sumitra arranges
Paro´s wedding to Zamindar Bhuvan (Vijayendra
Ghatge), a rich widower. Hurt by the turn of events Devdas
turns to his college friend Chunni Babu (Jackie Shroff) who opens Devdas´
eyes to the world of alcohol and prostitutes. Enter Chandramukhi (Madhuri Dixit) a popular tawaif, who
falls in love with the righteous Devdas. Sadly even her love cannot save
the doomed Devdas who quickly becomes an alcoholic. The pain of his lost
love can only be numbed by alcohol and it is that alcohol which ultimately
consumes Devdas´ life.
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Этот
фильм рекламировался как самый высокобюджетный в
истории Боливуда. Красочные декорации, костюмы,
визуальные эффекты, танцевальные композиции - все
это практические оправдывает такое представление.
Критики
не очень высоко оценивают форму развитие сюжета,
есть мнение, что фильм в целом скучоват. Западному
зрителю может показаться что влюбленый Девдас не
настолько влюблен, насколько имеет повод оправдывать
свой алкоголизм.
Для
исполнителя классического танца, особенно стиля
Катхак, этот фильм может служить помощью в постановке
зрелищных танцевальных на классической основе. Длительно
время у зрителя стран СНГ складывалось впечатление,
что танец индийского кино это попытка подстроиться
под Запад. Мы видели народный танец смешаннй с рок-н-роллом,
брэйком, бальным танцем,
диско и др.
И,
только Мадхури Диксит исполняла стилизованный Катхак
в большинстве своих фильмов.
Девдас
и Парвати были дружны с детства, но их разлучили,
когда Девдас был отправлен обучаться в Англию. Когда
вернулся, то узнал, что Парвати выдают замуж за
богатого вдовца (который, в свою очередь, страдает
от потери любимой жены и поклялся хранить ей верность
до смерти) со множеством детей.
Причиной
этого брака были ссора матери Девдаса Кошальи, которая
подстрекаемая неветкой Ананьей отказала матери Парвати
Самитри, принять ее дочь как невестку.
Не
в силах вынести боль разлуки с любим, Парвати говорит
будущему мужу, что тоже намерена хранить любовь
к своему другу - Девдасу.
Девдас,
страдая от любви пристрастился к алкоголю. Шатаясь
пьяным и постоянно думая о возлюбленной Парвати,
он попадает в дом танцовщицы Чандрамукхи. Чандрамукхи
влюбляется в него так сильно, что даже поклоняется
ему.
И,
все-таки, алкоголь полностью разрушает жизнь Девдаса
и он умирает.
Devdas
- визуальный шедевр с новой обработкой трагической
истории любви.
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The theme of the film is nothing new; in fact this is the fourth
version of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhye’s novel
to hit the screen. However under the direction of Sanjay Leela Bhansali,
who co-wrote the screenplay with Prakash
Kapadia, the story comes to life thanks to a fresh outlook and
innovative interpretation. The film is not perfect; in fact it´s far from
perfect, in the essential factoral category of putting together a powerful
film.
While Bhansali´s version is visually stunning, the pace of the film is
uneven. The first half is slow in some parts and only gains true momentum
post Morey-Piya once Paro´s wedding to Bhuvan is arranged.
Thankfully, however, Bhansali does not waste your time showing the lovers
as children. Instead he chooses to tackle that topic through periodic
flashbacks.
An emotive tale, a set back on the feel is the fact that the audience
is certainly more inclined to feel for the torn Paro and the courtesan
trying to find love more than Devdas. It is almost as if the
mis-understanding of Devdas by all around him is brought to life by not
giving the audience a chance to understand him. While that is of relative
importance, the dramatic intervals work for the most part. Assembling many
other scenes of emotive excellence like Sumitra being insulted by
Kaushalya and Sumitra´s subsequent outburst, Devdas´ reaction to his
father death and his scene at the funeral, the portions following ´Dola
Re´ where Madhuri confronts Milind Gunaji and the well-shot climax all
show us why Bhansali is considerably leagues ahead of some of Bollywood’s
current directors. He also utilizes poetic dialogues, which are heavily
evident throughout the film, probably a few in each reel, courtesy of
Prakash Kapadia. The comparisons of the scarred moon, the dialogues about
a woman scorn, and the lines that Devdas retorts frequently, “They tell me
to leave the house… Paro tells me to leave drinking… One day he will tell
me to leave the world…”, all lend poetic justice to the beautiful picture. |
Even still, despite all his efforts, Devdas fails to captivate the
viewer in every scene of the film, which we all hoped for. The story gets
boring in some areas, but the saving factor is that it
doesn´t completely disappoint. And when the pace tags on the viewer, the
stunning visuals certainly make up for it. While Devdas may have been
Sanjay Leela Bhansali´s hardest project to date, and the work clearly
shows, Khamoshi- The
Musical would still classify as his best work. The film
carries a certain subtlety, which at the very least is nowhere in this
majestical fairy tale enterprise.
Technically the film is flawless. If you are bored with the story, then
the visuals more than make up for it and make for some interesting
viewing. A lot of money has been spent and it shows everywhere. Nitin Chandrakant Desai´s designs for the
haveli´s is by far the best sets designs we have ever witnessed on screen.
Whether it´s the beautiful glasswork in Paro´s haveli, the stunning wall
tapestries adorning the walls of Paro and her husband’s house, or
Chandramukhi´s utterly breathtaking kotha, the sets are spectacular. He
deserves all the acclaim he can get for his work here, as by far this is
the best setting an Indian film has seen. To help along the way Binod Pradhan´s cinematography captures each
frame and turns it into art. The interesting camera angles show off as
much of the sets as they can, and the lighting further enhances the
delicate work that has gone into constructing these huge houses. Bhansali
also uses colors to his advantage, which we witnessed in his last effort
Hum Dil De Chuke
Sanam. Costumes are just as intricate as the sets. While
they look like they weight a ton, the clothing is stunning and fits very
well with the period of the film. Full credit goes to Neeta Lulla and the team of Abu Jani´ and Sandeep
Khosla´ who have poured their everything into dressing up the
stars.
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Ismail Darbar´s music also adds to
the grandeur of the film. The music completely compliments the film and is
perfect in creating the mood for each scene. While some songs get in the
way (especially Chalak Chalak), others are used to help the plot
progress (Morey Piya and Hamesha Tumko Chaha). The
picturization of Hamesha Tumko Chaha will bring a tear to the
viewer’s eye. Choreography is fantastic, and why not, the film brings
together two of India´s best dancers. Madhuri Dixit and Aishwarya Rai´s
dance sequence
in Dola Re is very well done and definitely deserves a mention.
Mar Dala and Silsila Yeh Chahat Ka are also well
choreographed. One department where Bhansali gets full marks for is extracting some
amazing performances from his cast. Shah Rukh Khan is Devdas, you can see
how much effort he has put into his performance. Although he does ham it
up in a few scenes, overall his performance is solid. In the first half he
doesn´t have too much of a scope for performance (again, despite being the
central protagonist), but after the interval he impresses with his drunken
scenes. He really impresses in the funeral scene. Essentially, when he’s
not repeating some of his usual emotions, he has done a great job. And he
shares excellent chemistry with Aishwarya and Madhuri, which helps him
with his performance. His performance may not be award worthy, but it is
definitely applaud worthy and certainly one of his better in recent times
(including that of Asoka). |
Aishwarya Rai gives her best performance to date. She uses her emotive
eyes to the best of her ability. The scene where she meets Milind Gunaji is impressive as is
the sequence where she first meets Chandramukhi. Not only does she emote
well, but also she carries herself with a lot of grace. And her dances are
the highlight of the film. However if there is one scene, which is
completely hers, it´s the climax, where she runs through the haveli to
catch one last glimpse of Devdas. Interestingly enough, a viewer will
certainly feel that she has more screen time than both of the actors, but
it is her awesome screen presence, which allows this. The actress has been
given a great deal of footage and takes full advantage of it. Wherever the
rumors begun of her disappointment by Madhuri’s “supposed” overpowering,
they can surely end now.
Madhuri Dixit also impresses as the fiery Chandramukhi. She leaves a
mark in the scene following Dola Re, and the scene where Devdas finally
admits his love for her. Of the three she has the smallest role, but she
takes full advantage of every scene she is given.
Had her role been a little longer she would have left much more of an
impact. Of the supporting cast Kiron Kher gives a shinning performance.
Without overdoing her fun loving character she breathes life into Sumitra.
Her confrontation with Kaushalya is award worthy, and her scene just
before the interval leaves an impression. Jackie does not impress as
Chunni Babu. He hams it up in all of his scenes and his character is
drastically underdeveloped. Smita Jaykar also hams it up in her initial
scenes, and does not leave any impression. The rest of the cast is
adequate. |
Devdas pleases the eye and provides more than adequate satisfaction for
those highly anticipating it. It is certainly a theatrical experience, at
the very least, as that is the only way you can take in the grand scale on
which it has been mounted. While the story does drag and seem boring at
times, it is an honest effort and Sanjay Leela Bhansali should be proud of
this film. The movie is filled with colors and amazing sets and costumes.
Add some excellent performances, fantastic dialogues by Prakash Kapadia,
great music and well choreographed dances and you have a film which may
not live up to unnecessarily towering expectations but almost makes it
there. Bhansali´s Devdas is a visual masterpiece with a fresh treatment of
a tragic love story. We are undoubtedly taken to higher levels of film
making in many portions of Devdas, but unfortunately not completely.
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