Manmarziyaan : From Fyaar to Shyaar with dollops of Pyaar

‘Future love does not exist. Love is a present activity only. The man who does not manifest love in the present has not loved.’ – Leo Tolstoy

To me that’s the Holy Grail and I happened to stumble on it in my quest for answers for the multiple questions that I pose to the universe. So what do I infer from it? I infer that you have to Love like there is no tomorrow, love like today is your last day. Because that is the only way I know love and so that is the way I choose to do it. But if you do live tomorrow, know that you have to take responsibility of your manifested love and the actions thereof. You cannot escape them. If not, walk away.

But that’s all good in theory. Doesn’t quite play out in real life. So, in the stock markets you can be well equipped with all the theory and enter the battle ground armed and armored. But the practical trader game is a whole new level. Why? Emotions. There are emotions involved and there is no way you can discount that in markets. Thus, the bloodbath will happen, and you have to figure out where you stand by the end of it. Emotionally as well as financially.

No different with love. 😊

Manmarziyaan, directed by Anurag Kashyap is a story of three people whose lives are intertwined not because they listened to their hearts, but to their heads. And if you thought that was the right choice between the two, think again. Sometimes logic can create havoc and there is nothing that you can do but sail the storm till you see clear skies. Rumi (Taapsee Pannu) and Vicky (Vicky Kaushal) are head over heels in love with each other. Their romance has pyaar, fyaar and that passion that all of us look for in a relationship. It has everything, but responsibility. And that’s where Robbie (Abhishek Bachchan) enters with tons of the missing ingredient. Responsibility with manifested love. What follows is a roller coaster of events as the three characters try to use logic, take advantage of the situation or plain simple run away from it, giving their friends and family members a hard time.

Taapsee Pannu shines throughout the film, bringing her A- game to the table as she portrays the loud, independent, short-tempered Punjabi Kudi who in love, will be a man’s ideal woman. One who is willing to follow him anywhere. From dialogue delivery to body language to spot emotions that she portrays, Taapsee manages to bring out the character’s stubbornness and maturity together with childlike naiveness in brilliant colors. Vicky Kaushal is swiftly climbing the skill ladder, and very soon could be one of the sought after actors and be counted among the top male leads of the current Hindi cinema horizon as he performs better, in each passing project. Abhishek Bachchan, after a long sabbatical has graced the screen and it’s a pleasure to watch him. The actor brings poise and class to his role and very clearly differentiating his character as that of a ‘man’, from Vicky Kaushal’s ‘boyish’ character keeping the intensity of madness in love intact though which is compelling.

Anurag Kashyap has conjured up a beauty with this one, giving the most common love story that exists, a new millennial approach. The pattern is simple and repetitive in nature, but the people involved, complicated. What is commendable is he has sketched these complicated characters very clearly thus directing them impeccably to bring out the raw, basic emotions that don’t care for well derived logic that eventually spill over. Written by Kanika Dhillon, the story is set up in the city of Amritsar and with Punjabi families as its foundation, the story absorbs their traditions, beliefs, opinions and to a large extent, the ‘it’s not the end of the world’ attitude that I’m extremely familiar with myself.

The music of the feature presentation is a winner, beautifully supporting the story telling, from the first scene to the last. After a really long time I’ve seen nearly 10+ tracks in a movie half of which I would love to hum. ‘Daryaa’ and ‘Grey wala shade’ are absolute favorites and the soul of the film as the lyrics transport you bringing out the intended emotions along with a big smile on your face. ‘F for Fyaar’ and ‘Dhyanchand’ are tracks that you can groove to making for perfect party numbers. Thus, a big thumbs up to Amit Trivedi for the music and Shellee for the poetry. Edited by Aarti Bajaj, the running time is about 157 minutes which is quite good for the pace of the film keeping it to the point and very rarely deviating.

All in all, Manmarziyaan offers you exactly what the title suggests. The stubbornness and confusion in the matters of the heart, where logic does play a role but you have to move ahead and make decisions by only how you feel about them. A good romantic drama streaked with tragedy that really morphs into comedy as the line blurs quickly. Go for it but don’t rationalize it. Because in the matters of the heart there is no room for your brilliant logic.