3.0/5
Lala Kedarnath (Akshay Kumar) has 4 sisters of marriageable age. These sisters, performed by Sadia Khateeb, Smrithi Srikanth, Deepika Khanna, and Sahejmeen Kaur, include their very own quirks. Whereas Sadia is near-perfect, Smrithi has a darkish complexion, Deepika is overweight, and Sahejmeen is a tomboy. Going by the frequent parlance, barring the eldest, the remaining aren’t “marriage materials”. Kedar has promised his dying mom that he’ll solely marry when he sees all 4 married off, and that places his relationship with neighbour, good friend, and childhood sweetheart, Sapna (Bhumi Pednekar), in jeopardy. How this chaat-seller, primarily based in Delhi’s well-known Chandni Chowk, whose speciality is gol-gappes, which make sure the buyer might be pregnant with a son, goes about his mammoth process, types the crux of the movie.
A method to take a look at director Aanand L. Rai’s movies is to classify them as examples of the cinema of the absurd. As a result of, whether or not deliberately or unintentionally, his movies have absurdist components. His final launch, Atrangi Re, for instance, talked about psychological well being however was set towards the backdrop of a woman’s hallucinations about her personal father, Tanu Weds Manu Returns bolstered the concept that males prefer to stray and search for a sure kind. Zero talked about how even the disabled and folks with lower than common peak want love too, however once more, the best way the message was conveyed wasn’t standard. In Raksha Bandhan, he offers out an anti-dowry message. One can say that it is absurd these days to think about a state of affairs the place a brother is struggling to get 4 of his sisters married. However the actuality is that dowry deaths are an on a regular basis phenomenon even now. So if a particularly loud, extraordinarily melodramatic effort, full of each brother-sister trope you possibly can consider, will get made to focus on it, ought to we ignore the message as a result of it was painted on an absurdist canvas? Perhaps what’s absurd is that we ask for and provides dowry even as we speak. Whilst that is being written, some woman is getting abused someplace for not bringing in sufficient dowry. The movie does not simply spotlight the issue, it affords an answer as effectively. It tells the ladies to construct a profession first after which search a suitable accomplice for themselves. It is a freedom the overwhelming majority of Indian women do not have even as we speak.
The factor is that Raksha Bandhan says all the fitting issues, however in a massively contrived method. Your tear ducts are forcefully focused each 5 minutes. Particularly, within the second half, the emotional atmosphere will get so heavy it threatens to drown you out. Like a swimmer caught off guard in a all of a sudden swelling river, the viewer has no reduction in sight. Perhaps a non-linear strategy would have helped.
Whereas the monitor between the sisters and Akshay Kumar has its moments, the romantic monitor between Bhumi Pednekar and Akshay might have been higher written. For instance, they might’ve been married and combating as a result of his world revolves round his sisters. Or at the least she might have been proven serving to him discover a resolution to his issues, as she’s the one good friend he is had since childhood. A childhood sweetheart would assist out, proper? They do share a sure chemistry, however we want their romance was etched out in a greater approach.
Technically, the movie can’t be faulted. The set and manufacturing design, in addition to VFX, are world-class, making you consider you are really at Chandni Chowk. The mayhem and insanity of the place have been captured flawlessly. It’s all there minus the scent. The cinematography by Okay U Mohanan is spot on too. Aanand L Rai’s frames all the time look busy, and the identical is the case right here as effectively.
The 4 women, regardless of not sharing facial similarities like siblings principally do, handle to convey the chemistry of close-knit sisters. Bhumi Pednekar’s position, as mentioned earlier, isn’t as fleshed out as one would have wished for. She has her second within the solar throughout her confrontational scene with Akshay and carries it off just like the seasoned actor she is. The movie rests squarely on Akshay Kumar’s in a position shoulders. He offers off the proper elder brother vibes, regardless of the age distinction he shares along with his display sisters, from the primary and the final body. And handles all of the heavy-duty emotional scenes effectively too. Full marks to him for sincerity and dedication.
Trailer : Raksha Bandhan
Archika Khurana, August 11, 2022, 3:42 AM IST
2.5/5
Raksha Bandhan Story: Duty for the 4 sisters’ marriage rests on the shoulders of Lala Kedarnath, the eldest and solely brother. What follows are his relentless efforts to make sure his sisters settled down in marriage earlier than marrying Sapna, his childhood sweetheart. Will he have the ability to preserve his guarantees, or does destiny produce other plans for him?
Raksha Bandhan Assessment: The movie takes off shortly within the locales of Chandni Chowk, the place Lala Kedarnath (Akshay Kumar) owns a pushtaini gol gappa (panipuri) store. He’s well-liked, particularly among the many pregnant girls who consider that after gulping down gol gappas from his store, they may presumably give beginning to a child boy. Even in his private life, he’s surrounded by a gang of 4 sisters— wise and accountable Gayatri (Sadia Khateeb), chubby Durga (Deepika Khanna), dusky Laxmi (Smrithi Srikanth), and tomboyish Saraswati (Sahejmeen Kaur) — and, in fact, his girlfriend, Sapna (Bhumi Pednekar).
Lala made a promise to his mom on her deathbed that he would tie the knot solely after he has fulfilled his duty of marrying his sisters into appropriate properties. Regardless of his finest efforts and cautious screening of all obtainable males, he’s unable to marry off his sisters. On the similar time, Lala’s devotion to his sisters impedes his romantic life with Sapna.
After Atrangi Re!, director Aanand L Rai and author Himanshu Sharma collaborate once more. Kanika Dhillon has co-written this familial story that’s overly easy and relatable. Rai creates a world that fantastically depicts siblings’ love and assist for each other. The primary half is a breeze, because of Lala’s sisters’ teasing and bonding, however the second half is extra emotionally-charged, turning it right into a social commentary. In consequence, the narrative will get repetitive and a tad tedious within the latter half, making you marvel the place it’s all headed. The writing might have been stronger, crisper and simpler.
Although the songs (by Himesh Reshammiya) are simply forgettable, it doesn’t interrupt the narrative. As with most of his tales, Rai makes up for it with a transferring ending and a few unpredictable touches. He additionally invests in his characters and provides every one scope to shine. The issue right here is, that the plot seems too cluttered and at instances is stuffed with contrivances that don’t mix effectively with the story. They’ve tried to make use of humour by means of the narrative, but it surely’s typically misplaced.
Akshay has successfully conveyed his character Lala’s many feelings at completely different factors within the movie. Whether or not he’s enjoying the helpless brother or dedicated lover, the actor is in kind all through. Bhumi Pednekar as Sapna performs with conviction. However her on-screen chemistry with Akshay Kumar of their earlier outing collectively was higher.
The 4 sisters—debutants Sahejmeen Kaur and Smrithi Srikanth in addition to Deepika Khanna, Sadia Khateeb—lend nice assist and steadily deliver dose of comedy. Seema Pahwa is efficient in her restricted position as a matchmaker.
‘Raksha Bandhan’ displays the tales of individuals from small-town India, and in that effort, it does entertain particularly within the first half. Nonetheless, the story about bandhan between siblings quickly turns right into a social commentary about dowry, which takes up quite a lot of screentime of this 110-minute film. This extremely emotional drama doesn’t fail to the touch you, but it surely had the potential to be a much more entertaining watch.