Vishu (Dhanush) and Rinku (Sara Ali Khan) end up in a forced marriage that results in Vishu’s breakup with his girlfriend. Rinku was married to him so that she can stop dreaming about her lover’s return. Just when Vishu develops emotions for her, Rinku’s boyfriend surfaces.
Believe me, I am aware of the plot that I am writing to you and that has occurred millions of times in this industry. But the story gets interesting after wasting one hour of your precious life. So you may take it this way that the plot of Atrangi Re is interesting but the execution is outrageous.
While you begin to watch this film, the direction and the leading performances look spot on but somewhere in your heart tells you that there is something really wrong with the film. The film lacks the heart, all the hard work of Sara Ali Khan and Dhanush looks wasted because the script is not doing any justice. Just like the whole wrong sentence should be rephrased for a better meaning, the story deserved a better screenplay. Especially the second half is meaningless, overstretched, and lost. Instead of coming to the conclusion, we are wasting our time watching cheesy humor.
What impresses me about Dhanush is that he chooses the right role where he really fits in the story and does a better job. And his acting is upgraded for sure and you can judge that by observing him when he is laughing-gassed to get married. This is the first time I watched Sara Ali Khan’s performances and she really has some acting skills at this early phase of her career. Yes, she was reminding us of Jab We Met‘s Geet, in fact, the whole film was like Jab We Met crossing the path with Raanjhanaa.
I think the biggest plus of this film is A.R.Rahman‘s score. This has to be his best work since Raanjhanaa. Melodious and soulful. Even if a few songs were ordinary, that old beat was just right there. On so many occasions, his background score was disconnecting me; especially when Vishu and Rinku are getting married.
Overall, I wish I would say that Rahman’s music saved the day but Atrangi Re, despite two above-average performances, is a disappointment. Even the presence of superstar like Akshay Kumar didn’t help nor was he utilized.
Ratings: 5/10
Sami Naik | Film Critic 