So here I am, penning down the review almost 24 hours after Dil Bechara has already arrived on the OTT. Just like was the case after watching the promo, I didn’t have the heart to pen down a detailed review. How can one do that when a film ceases to be ‘just a film’, and it is more of a conversation that one has with the lead actor? Albeit one sided, you feel like reaching out to Sushant Singh Rajput, sit down with him, give him a hug and ask him the question that everyone in the world wants to know – ‘Why?’.
This is a film which lasts for just 100 minutes and unlike many other movie experiences where one tends to say that if only the duration could have been smaller, it is a different kind of emotion when it comes to Dil Bechara. Here, you want to say, ‘just a little more’!
That’s exactly the core emotion of the film too, which is to hold on for just a little while. Both Sushant Singh Rajput and his leading lady, Sanjana Sanghi, know that their days are numbered. Of course they both want to live for a little while more. They have a different approach towards doing that though. Sushant is all happy, charming and energetic, despite wearing a prosthetic leg. Sanjana is sweet, sensible and sober, and all that she wants is some peace around her so that she can breathe a bit easy. Well, literally as well as metaphorically!
Now a set up like this could have either been an Anand or a Phir Milenge or a Kal Ho Na Ho. However, first time director Mukesh Chhabra makes sure that he brings in his own vision come into play for this official adaptation of The Fault in Our Stars. This means there is no melodrama, no sugar-n-saccharine moments and no hysteric outbursts either. Instead, it all plays organically, as you step into the lives of the two 23 year olds who find themselves together in the same Jamshedpur college as well as the cancer counseling centers.
Thankfully, the moments are all original in there. There isn’t the ‘pehli nazar ka pyaar’ syndrome coming into place and nor is anyone or anything playing cupid here. It’s the conversations that make them bond, and the fact that they both have altogether different tastes in films and music. He likes Rajinikanth, she likes soulful music, and then they arrive at a common point.
Even the family scenes are so beautifully woven in there. Sanjana’s father [Saswata Chatterjee, who was oh-so-wonderful in Kahaani], an Engineer ‘who learnt anything but engineering in college’ loves to have a round of beer with Sushant in the rain, while her mother’s [Swastika Mukherjee, recently seen in Paatal Lok and before that as a seductress in Sushant Singh Rajput’s Detective Byomkesh Bakshy] eyes twinkle when she realizes that her daughter ‘finally had that long walk’ with Sushant in Paris. All in all, nothing artificial but all really beautiful.
This is where one feels that had the music of the film too been as beautiful, Dil Bechara could well have been into a different league altogether. Yes, ‘Main Tumhara’ has a haunting feel to it, courtesy the unrequited love oozing out of it. However, rest of it just doesn’t make much of an impression. Of course, amongst A.R. Rahman’s fans there is always a pet excuse that his music grows on you. However, Dil Bechara is certainly no Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Naa, and that shows.
Talking of Jane Tu Ya Jaane Naa, Sanjana Sanghi could well find herself in the slot that has been left vacant by Geneli D’Souza who had a rather restricted run in Bollywood, albeit out of her own choice. Seen earlier in Angrezi Medium as well as Fukrey Returns, she is a find. She is just the girl next door who you want to care. As a fragile girl who just likes to be happy and have peace in her life, she is relatable while being truly beautiful in body and soul. She is someone you want to protect!
Amongst supporting actors, there is Sahil Vaid who gives a good account of himself yet again after the Dulhania series [Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, Badrinath Ki Dulhania] as well as lesser known but a good watch, Bank Chor. Unlike many other films, especially in the recent past, where character actors end up overdoing the whole small town part, he doesn’t fall into that trap. As for Saif Ali Khan’s one scene cameo, it is not just well written but also quite well enacted. The actor nails the part really well and shows what he is made of in just one scene. Superb.
Of course, what’s truly superb is the man of the show, Sushant Singh Rajput. He is just perfect in there. He makes you smile, makes you cry and overall entertains you with his charming and lively act. Rest assured, had he been alive, even the biggest of his detractors would have appreciated this heartfelt act! In fact after watching the film, I truly believe that Sushant Singh Rajput deserved to be around to catch this entertainer with audiences. He would have been impressed with the live response that his spontaneous performance would have garnered.
All in all, Dil Bechara is a beautiful soulful film and an entertainer all the way. The love story is heartfully woven in the narrative and is so organic. There is no dull moment and is a smile through affair. A must watch for those with a romantic heart.
(As a mark of respect for Sushant Singh Rajput, there won’t be any rating provided for the film. This is film which is all heart, and not to be bound by the ratings)