By: Amit KumaR Agarwal
Relationships are getting very very complex and the famed happy Indian
marriage may soon be a thing of past. What is required for a marriage to
work? Compatibility.
In this age of I, me, myself; where image is of prime importance - how do you let go off your false, shallow image; and learn to accept your true-self; worthy.
These two thoughts are masterly woven and juxtaposed in the narrative of Bawaal.
With Bawaal, Nitesh Tiwari firmly cements his place in the league of master story-tellers we have today, S.S. Rajamouli and Rajkumar Hirani.
Ajay or Ajju bhai (Varun Dhawan) is a self-centred man who is very image-conscious. A history teacher in a school in Lucknow, he would have people believe that he gave up becoming an IAS officer or join NASA or play in the Indian cricket team because of quirky circumstances. He marries Nisha (Janhvi Kapoor) to flaunt her to boost his image, but right at vidaai, Nisha suffers from epilepsy. Ajay . is shaken such that he is unwilling to even acknowledge his wife, much to the unhappiness of her parents and even his own parents.
One day he slaps the son of MLA (Mukesh Tiwari). He is suspended for a month. To maintain his image he decides to teach students history from World War II locations. He is forced to take Nisha to Europe, so that his father (Manoj Pahwa) takes the tab.
One day he slaps the son of MLA (Mukesh Tiwari). He is suspended for a month. To maintain his image he decides to teach students history from World War II locations. He is forced to take Nisha to Europe, so that his father (Manoj Pahwa) takes the tab.
As he visits places of historical significance during World War II, he keeps posting videos explaining what all transpired there during WWII. These videos educate his students about the War; but slowly and firmly brings about a change in Ajju's life. In the end he realises his folly and apologizes to Nisha for the way he was.
It is quite an unusual screenplay - as such it requires deft writing skills to sail through. Nitesh is in total command over the written material and makes a compelling film that has that subtle dose of humor hovering all through the film.
Varun Dhawan is brilliant. Jahnvi Kapoor, again after Gunjan Saxena, gives a very credible performance. She together with Sara Ali Khan and Ananya Pandey are the best actresses of the younger generation. Rest of the cast is very good. One actor that deserves a special mention is the octogenarian, a holocaust survivor, that recounts time with his wife - I doubt if any eye isn't moist in this scene. Brilliant act.
Nitesh Tiwari has raised the bar such with Bawaal that one just can't wait to see his retelling of Ramayan.