Disclaimer: This isn't a review as such, but some musings caused by some old scars that started hurting all over again. To save you time, let me just quickly say, if Aanand L Rai's 'Tanu Weds Manu' brought tears in your eyes, 'Raanjhanaa' will make your heart bleed.
'Raanjhanaa' is for those who believe in eternal old-school-love, longing, tears, slit wrists, sleepless nights, the unsaid and the unspoken, the truth and lies and how true love never ever dies. People die, the love doesn't. Or may be it does these days. Not in the good ol' days when guys would buy musical greeting cards, write poetry or even write love letters with their own blood. I heard recently that a couple broke off their '7 weeks long' relationship on Twitter. Too bad, 'Raanjhanaa' might not work for those bunch of kids.
Coming back to my thoughts, my memories and scars, triggered by this well-told story...
It was a rainy night. A young guy, punch drunk, had set off on his final journey. Or so he thought. At about 120kmph on the highway all he could see was the smile that made him freeze when he first saw it. A smile that detached him from his entire universe. Everything that he had, family or friends had ceased to exist at that moment. Call it what you will, but he saw that moment when Kundan sees Zoya for the first time when they were tiny kids with no idea of the world around them.
This happened a month even before our guy had professed undying love to this girl he fell for.
Our guy was having a bad day. A very bad one. He had quit his job, just because his boss wouldn't give him a day off to be there on the birthday of that girl who he loved more than anything or anyone in this world. He re-lived that moment when Kundan forgets about his OWN marriage, just to be there for that girl who left him for somebody who he didn't even know existed.
Friends are forever, love perhaps comes with an expiry date
Things were beginning to get sad and the relationship didn't seem to be heading anywhere. Our guy was at a shady dance bar, being wooed by some random whores for a quick buck. He was almost about to give in to the temptation and that's when his one-time best friend storms into that place, slaps our guy and takes him back home. Our guy expresses his gratitude by slapping his best friend back after being got back home safe minus any sexually transmitted diseases. The character played by Zeeshan (Kundan's best friend) drowned me in the memories of so many such things my best friends did for me (and still continue to do so), despite me being such an a**h**e friend.
Little did our guy know that the magik of love & the love of magik wears off too...
A few years later their relationship was over. The guy was heartbroken and his soul was bruised. He incidentally bumped into the girl he refused to call his 'ex' yet. She was still wearing an earring that he had gifted her, when they were still together. Our guy relived the moment when Kundan was trying to touch Zoya's anklet while she was in the hospital.
True love comes back, even if it is in the form of another person...
After many years, a decade almost, our guy gets lucky enough to meet a girl as mad as he is; perhaps more. But he was still stuck to the memories of the girl he loved and still refused to call his 'ex'. This time it seemed like the guy was destined for a long relationship. But he still wouldn't open up. The girl kept trying, with the patience of a monk. She kept trying till he finally realized that he was ruining his life for nothing. He thought about this when he saw Bindiya, the character played by Swara Bhaskar, just wouldn't give up on Kundan, despite him being such an idiot.
There is a God up there somewhere, whatever name we give him, he is doing a damn good job.
Today when I watched Raanjhanaa, it was again a rainy night, like the beginning of this post. Thanks to Aanand L Rai's labour of love, I have relived countless memories of the guy I was, guy I knew, the guy I have become and the guy I know that I will be tomorrow. I will stop writing now, as I am feeling emotionally stripped after putting down these thoughts here. The girl who waited patiently for me to get over my ex, is still patiently waiting for me to finish this post, so that we can chat about 'Raanjhanaa' for the rest of the night... or is it day already?
One last question to the director -
Why did you not let Krsna & Rajshekhar to do the music of Raanjhanaa? Wish you had given them a chance. I was pining for that 'Rangrez mere' moment when I stormed out of the theatre, not being able to control my tears at all. Full respect to ARR sir & the gems he created for your film, but the 'Rangrez mere' moment is still missing... Perhaps in your next film... I hope... I wait...
The rest of y'all in Ramgarh, if you do watch the film, please write in the comments of what you feel about this film. All my love & wishes for Dhanush, Sonam, Zeeshan & Swara, I am sure they will go places once Raanjhanaa finds its real audience & its own space in the universe of eternal love...
Amen.
Love, Magik.
