Review: Movie - Rockstar

Thankfully I was able to watch this movie on the large screen, today being the last day last show at the local cinema here. I am assuming most of you have already watched it but still here is what I think of it.

Plot:  

Janardan Jakhar (later Jordan), inspired by Jim Morrison, seeks pain to infuse life into his music on the advice of his friend and college canteen manager Khatanaji. In his quest of pain he seeks to woo Heer, a dil-todne-ki-machine to fall in love and get his heart broken. Heer who is getting married soon wants to live life to the fullest before settling down with a rich husband. Soon enough Heer and JJ are running around Delhi streets engaging in activities that they call ‘Gandh-Machana’.

Heer moves to Prague with her husband and JJ gets thrown out of his house and takes refuge in ‘Hazrat Nizzamuddin’. He is spotted by Ustaad Jameel Khan (Shammi Kapoor) a renowned classical artist and thus his singing career gets a start. Events unfold and Heer  Jordan’s paths cross several times.  Heer who is JJ’s elixir of creativity also becomes the poison of his destruction.  For Heer, Jordan is the spark of life and yet the very flame that consumes her.

Screenplay/Dialogs:

Imtiaz Ali is an intelligent director, the story telling is nonlinear and he expects the audience to fill gaps and thus avoiding any spoon feeding. The story is told from Jordan’s perspective so don’t go in expecting to watch the rise of a rockstar from a audience/fan perspective. You are in Jordan’s shoes and only see what he sees so there are a lot of details that you need to figure out like what happens to Heer while she is away or how Khatana deals with others to keep things in control inspite of Jordan's reckless behavior. Being an artist he lives in a world of his own, oblivious of the ways of the world.  The director tries to reiterate the point at several occasions – the opening and closing lines by Rumi, Janardan being mocked by his friends at the start of the film and still not able to figure that out, his complete disregard for fans, authority and even Heer’s illness.

Cast/Performances:

Barring Nargis as the female lead, the rest of the casting is impeccable and Ranbir is a rockstar indeed. The attention to detail in each character is endearing. Watchout for Ranbir’s changing looks even in the smallest of sequences, each look automatically tells you a story. Piyush Mishra does justice to his small part as does Kumud Mishra as Khatanji. There are not too many known faces in the ensemble but each character fits the role perfectly.

Music/Songs:

Music is the heart and soul of the film. A R Rahman is in peak form and so is Irshaad Kaamil with his brilliant lyrics. Mohit Chauhan’s soulful voice infuses life in the songs and suits Ranbir’s character well. The songs have already topped the charts. My favorites are – ‘Nadaan Parindey’ and ‘Hawa Hawa’.

Verdict: 

 It is one of those rare films that stay with you for a long after you walk out of the theatre. If a movie like ‘Ready’ and ‘Houseful’ is your staple consumption then it’s certainly not for you. But if you crave for some depth, some imagination you can bet your money on it. I’ll go with 4/5.