Shamshera Movie Review: Ranbir Kapoor Fails To Get His Crowning Moment Despite His Sincere Act

Story

Set
in
1800s,

Shamshera
begins
with
an
introduction
to
the
Khameran
tribe
in
a
comic
book
style.
Uprooted
from
their
soil,
the
illustrious
warrior
clan
now
resorts
to
plundering
the
wealth
of
the
rich
who
consider
themselves
as
the
upper
caste.
They
loot
them
in
order
to
avenge
the
caste
discrimination
faced
by
them
at
their
hands.

In
order
to
keep
the
freedom
and
integrity
of
the
tribe,
their
leader
Shamshera
(Ranbir
Kapoor)
signs
a
pact
with
Shuddh
Singh
(Sanjay
Dutt),
an
Indian
officer
of
the
British
officers.
Unfortunately,
the
latter
betrays
Shamshera’s
trust
and
deports
the
entire
Khameran
tribe
to
Kaza
fortress
where
they
are
kept
in
captivity.
While
trying
to
save
his
tribe
from
the
clutches
of
the
tyrannical
Shuddh
Singh,
in
a
twist,
he
gets
branded
as
‘bhagora’
by
his
pregnant
wife
and
stoned
to
death.

Twenty-five
years
later,
Shamshera’s
grown
son
Balli
(also
Ranbir
Kapoor),
a
happy-go-lucky
guy
and
a
petty
thief
aspires
to
be
an
officer
in
the
same
army
which
killed
his
father
to
win
the
heart
of
Sona
(Vaani
Kapoor),
a
travelling
performer.
However,
fate
has
some
other
plans
in
store
for
him
as
he
soon
finds
himself
in
following
into
his
father’s
footsteps-

‘karam
se
dacait,
dharm
se
azad.’

Direction

Karan
Malhotra
tries
to
present
a
potpourri
of
different
sub-plots
in
his
latest
outing,
Shamshera.
There’s
a
battle
against
casteism
with
a
sprinkle
of
revenge,
a
love
story
which
breaks
barriers
and
finally,
some
uprising
against
the
British
Raj.
However,
the
unimaginative
writing
fails
to
do
justice
to
any
of
these
elements
in
the
story.

One
of
the
biggest
shortcomings
of

Shamshera
is
the
lack
of
emotional
connect.
The
character
of
Shamshera
who
is
supposed
to
be
the
backbone
of
the
events
unfolding
later
in
the
film,
is
bumped
off
in
a
jiffy
sans
giving
us
enough
scenes
to
either
bask
in
his
heroism
or
his
vulnerable
moments.

Malhotra
builds
scenes
after
scenes
without
keeping
a
check
on
whether
they
have
the
right
amount
of
emotions.
As
a
result,
what
unfolds
on
screen
is
a
product
which
is
eye-pleasing
but
without
any
soul.
Even
if
we
suspend
disbelief
or
logic,
some
of
the
scenes
are
outrightly
ridiculous.
Piyush
Mishra’s
dialogues
are
banal.

Performances

Ranbir
Kapoor
in
his
first-ever
larger
than
life
screen
appearance,
puts
his
heart
and
soul
to
deliver
an
honest
performance
even
in
the
bleakest
of
the
scenes.

With

Shamshera,
the
actor
has
proved
that
there’s
more
to
him
that
just
playing
man-child
in
films.
All
he
needs
is
a

dhamakedaar
script
and
a
solid
director!
It’s
disheartening
to
see
that
Karan
Malhotra
barely
utilize
Kapoor’s
prowess
when
it
comes
to
enacting
emotional
scenes.

Sanjay
Dutt
as
the
diabolical
antagonist
Shuddh
Singh,
tiptoes
between
caricaturish
evil
and
comic
relief.
However,
his
scenes
with
Ranbir
are
worth
digging
into.
Vaani
Kapoor
with
her
flexible
and
graceful
moves,
dances
her
way
to
your
eyes
looking
for
some
pleasing
visuals.
But
when
it
comes
to
substance,
the
girl
barely
gets
enough
ground
to
perform.

Saurabh
Shukhla
gets
to
quip
some
poetic
lines
and
is
at
his
usual
best.
Ronit
Roy
and
Iravati
Harshe
are
saddled
with
flimsy
characters.

Technical
Aspects

The
action
sequences
have
been
executed
well
in
Shamshera
but
they
are
far
away
from
being
‘larger
than
life’.
Anay
Goswamy
deserves
the
credit
for
the
arresting
visuals
of
the
arid
deserts
and
sandstorms,
the
chilly
streams
and
the
lush
forest.
Shivkumar
V
Panicker’s
editing
has
its
share
of
ups
and
downs.

Music

Mithoon’s
music
is
a
treat
for
the
ears.
As
promised,
‘Kaale
Naina’
has
your
eyes
glued
to
the
screen.
‘Ji
Huzoor’
has
a
certain
sense
of
mischievousness
which
leaves
you
smiling.
‘Fitoor’
is
a
love
ballad
that
you
would
want
to
wear
on
a
quiet,
rainy
evening.
‘Hunkara’
and
‘Parinda’
flow
with
the
narrative.

Verdict

If
only
stealing
the
audience’s
hearts
was
as
easier
as
Shamshera
and
his
tribe
looting
gold
in
the
film!
But,
beware,
all
that
glitters
is
not
always
gold.