Veer Zaara:Rahat Raihan's review
Veer Zaara (2004)
Director: Yash Chopra
Cast:
Shah Rukh Khan
Rani Mukherji
Priety Zinta
Kiron Kher
Boman Irani
& special appearances by
Amitabh Bachan &
Hema Malini
Movie review by
Rahat Raihan:
Rating: 3.5/5
Yash Raj Films' combination with Shah Rukh Khan always indicates a romantic tale. And when the master of romance is behind the camera to direct the best romantic hero of all times, is there any confusion that Yash Chopra's "Veer Zaara" is a masterpiece of romance? If there is any, then learn that the film's story & screenplay are written by Aditya Chopra, whose magic of romance is still continuing at Mumbai's Maratha Mandir after about ten years of its origination (Who can forget Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge?).
So, can Veer Zaara recreate the magic of DDLJ or Dil To Pagal Hai?
"Veer-Zaara" is the story of an Indian man Veer & a Pakistani woman Zaara.
Veer Pratap Singh (Shah Rukh Khan) is a rescue pilot with indian air force who loves to help people in danger.
On the other hand, Zaara Hayat Khan (Priety Zinta), who is the daughter of a famous Pakistani politician (Boman Irani) is an ordinary & simple girl who is ready to marry the man of her parent's choice, Raza (Monoj Bajpai).
One day, Zaara comes to India without infoming any family member to keep her hindu mother's last wish. But her bus meets an accident and Veer saves her. They become good friends as Veer helps her to reach her destination. Veer also takes her to show his village & his uncle (Amitabh Bachan) & Aunt (Hema Malini). Veer falls in love with Zaara. But before he tells her about his love, Raza enters in the story. He is here to take Zaara back. Zaara goes back to Pakistan & expresses her love to her servant who calls Veer and tells him to come to Pakistan before it becomes too late. Veer comes to Pakistan but here a fully different situation is waiting for him.
Are you getting smell of DDLJ? Hero falls in love with the heroine whose marriage has already been readied by her parents. He goes to her country to bring her back. But let me inform you, the similarities end here. Veer Zaara is completely different from DDLJ or Henna(Where too an Indian man falls in love with a Pakistani woman).
Its story & treatment both are fully fresh.
But Veer-Zaara isn't a flawless journey. The dark side of it is its length & pace. It doesn't have the pace required for holding audiences' attraction for such a long period. Some songs could easily be deleted. Specially, the song in court room. It was just not needed. Also the song which was used for introducing Priety Zinta could be deleted as well. Few other scenes could be deleted too to keep the pace going.
But without this side, Veer Zaara is a winner from almost the way thanks to Yashji's amazing storytelling. He has proved that he is still the best when it comes to mix romance with emotion. Aditya Chopra's flawless story & screenplay also deserve lion's share of the film's success.
The film starts very well with a poem recited by Yashji with some beautiful scenes. Then the song "Kion Hawan" picturised on SRK is mind-blowing. The initial scenes between Shah Rukh & Rani are brilliantly canned & they only increase the curiousity of the viewers' for the real drama to unfold.
Anil Mehta's cinematography is fantastic.
Music by Modon-Mohan is well tuned. But the songs are quite old fashioned & slow. Yet "Aisa Desh Hai Mera", "Tere Liye" & "Do Pal Rukha" stand out. "Kion Hawan" is a beautiful track as well.
The choreography is above average, but should be better.
Visual effect is flawless & it gives the film a new taste. The dialogues are well worded.
Veer-Zaara has a eye shattering star cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukherji, Priety Zinta, Amitabh Bachan, Hema Malini, Kirron Kher & Boman Irani.
Almost all the actors did justice to their roles. But no one could shine brighter than Shah Rukh Khan. The actor is in superb form once again. If anyone has any confusion about his acting power [Can there be anyone?], all he has to do is to see Veer Zaara!
As the old man in jail, Shah Rukh had only a few dialogues. But watch his facial expressions! They were saying for him! Watch out for the scenes when SRK recites a poem in the court room [Heart touching] or crosses the border after freeing from jail [Brilliantly executed]. He is the true soul of the film.
Priety Zinta has already proved her merit by films like KAL HO NAA HO. And since its the first time the actress is working with Yashji, she had a lots of expectations. But this time, she disappoints badly. She has failed to portray the role of Zaara fully. It is not among the finest performances from the actress at all. Also, she looks odd. The make-up is mainly responsible for it.
But Rani Mukherji excels in the role of Saamiya Siddique. She was very much natural and without a shed of doubt, a complete scene stealer. It's her most accomplished work till now. Watch out for the scene when Rani tells the jail officer not to mention Veer as 786. Its marvelous.
Amitabh Bachan has done an excellent job. His chemistry with Hema Malini is a bonus for the audiences.
Boman Irani is okay. But an actor of his calibre deserves some more screen space. Kirron Kher leaves an impact. Watch out for the scene when she meets SRK to request him to forget Zaara.
On the whole, despite some flaws, at the end of the day, Veer Zaara is a winner. But because of the improper length, some unrequired scenes & songs & a disappointing performance from the female lead(Priety Zinta) it can't join the same group of DILWALE DULHANIA LE JAYENGE & DIL TO PAGAL HAI.
Veer Zaara will surely raise a storm at the box office. Because of the eye shattering star cast & the name behind the movie, it should rewrite the box office history again.
Blockbuster written all over it.
