Movie Review: ‘Badrinath Ki Dulhania’
BANNER: Dharma Productions
PRODUCER: Hiroo Johar, Karan Johar, Apoorva Mehta
DIRECTOR: Shashank Khaitan
DISTRIBUTOR: Fox Star Studios
CAST: Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Sahil Vaid, Gauahar Khan, Aakanksha Singh, Shweta Basu Prasad
LENGTH: 2 Hours 19 Minutes
STORY: The story of the film revolves around a Jhansi based moneylender’s zany son Badrinath Bansal (Varun Dhawan) and Kota based middle-class but ambitious girl Vaidehi Trivedi (Alia Bhatt). Badri, who considers himself to be one of the most eligible bachelors of his town, meets Vaidehi at a wedding and falls in love with her. But Vaidehi, who has once been taken for a ride in love, has no time for love, marriage and motherhood. All she dreams of is becoming a successful air hostess and live a peaceful life. But before she embarks on the journey of fulfilling her dreams, she wants her elder sister to settle down. Meanwhile, Badri is hell-bent on marrying Vaidehi. He promises her that he will find a groom for her elder sister and then both the couples can marry at the same wedding function. But, at the wedding day, something unexpected happens which leads to a fallout between Badri and Vaidehi. Will they ever come back together? Will Vaidehi be able to fulfill her dreams? To know, head to your closest cinema hall!
ANALYSIS: ‘Badrinath Ki Dulhania’ is the second installment of the franchise which began with ‘Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania’ in 2014. This is not the continuation of the first film. The only thread which connects both the movies is the lead pair of Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan along with director Shashank Khaitan and producer Karan Johar. While the story of the first film was based in Punjab, the second movie is based against the backdrop of two cities Jhansi and Kota. The film has a strong plotline, which has been embellished further with well-written dialogues and tight screenplay. Alia and Varun seem to have done a lot of work on their diction and body language to get into the skin of their characters which hail from small towns. Both the actors have aced the language they speak in the movie. Their chemistry is one of the main highlights of the movie. Some of the emotional scenes picturised on them are so amazing that they stay with you even after the end of the movie. Sahil Vaid, who plays Varun’s best friend, also pulls off his character quite effortlessly. Despite being a South Indian, he has delivered his dialogues in the pure local language of the town his character belongs to in the film. Talking about direction, Shashank Khaitan has really grown as a filmmaker since his last directorial. As the captain of the ship, he has kept the film engrossing from start to finish. He has tried to give a message through the movie, which he succeeds in without being at all preachy. Having said that, one thing that is important to mention here is that the film could have been finished within two hours. It is a bit stretched in the second half. Some scenes were totally uncalled for and could have been edited out easily. Music of the film is good and catchy. The makers have not forced any songs deliberately, which is a good thing. Production value of the film is quite rich. Overall, ‘Badrinath Ki Dulhania’ is a refreshing entertainer which can be enjoyed with the entire family.
TRADE BUZZ: The film had a strong prerelease buzz, which has resulted in good occupancy across all reasons. Moreover, it is a sequel to the hit ‘Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania’, so the excitement among the audience for the film is palpable. Critics have given positive response to the film which will ensure that it enjoys a very good weekend also. If the word of mouth also turns out to be good after a few shows, then it is expected that the movie will do phenomenal business at the ticket window. ‘Badrinath Ki Dulhania’ is one such film which will appeal to both multiplex audience as well as single screens audience.
