Cast: Harshvardhan Rane, Mawra Hocane
Producer: Deepak Mukut
Director: Radhika Rao & Vinay Sapru
Writer: Radhika Rao, Vinay Sapru
Genre: Romance
Release Date: 2016-02-05
Language: Hindi
Rating: 0/5

Radhika Rao and Vinay Sapru are the leading directors of music videos and many of Salman’s hit songs, and Salman’s musically inclined film, Lucky…No Time For Love. This time around the duo has casted two fresh faces who are making their Bollywood debuts – Harshvardhan Rane and Mawra Hocane – both of whom were very excited about Sanam Teri Kasam when we spoke to them.

This film revolves around the flashback by Inder, played by Harsh, which goes into the story of Inder and Saraswati (“Saru”), played by Mawra. Inder is a carefree, raw character who is the opposite of the kind of guy Saru’s father wants for Saru. But Saru keeps getting rejected. And that prolongs the eventual marriage of her younger sister. This upsets many. Saru then decides to go through a major transformation (at least, physically) but also ends up committing acts that make his father write her off as being “dead”. A lot happens in the interim between Inder and Saru though…and that is what is at the heart of the story – without giving away too much.

The first thing that stands out in this film is the fantastic music, which we got a taste of prior to the release of the film. Himesh Reshammiya needs to be given props for putting out music that matches the soul of the film, but is also different than a lot of the songs we have heard from the Himesh camp. The music is basically a character of the film.

The second thing that stands out is the clear showcase of experience that the director duo bring to the film. The film has some magical moments between the lead pair. The film has an emotional quotient that is essential to any love story but not something we see in every love story. The directors clearly have built on their experiences and while the story is not a complex, hard-to-follow stor, the story engages viewers. While the story lags every now and then, it is a well-directed film. Certain scenes are clearly stand-out performances – not just from the actors but the crew as well. It is everybody who creates a magical moment. There are other scenes that are a bit over-the-top, and while they detract from the overall quality of the film, the overall script and storyline remain consistently good.

Let’s get to the leading pair. While Harsh and Mawra come with their own abundant level of experience from outside of Bollywood, this is, of course, their first Bollywood outing. Let’s talk about Harsh first. The great thing is – he does not come across as a newcomer in Hindi cinema. He is quite good in many hard scenes, that require an understated emotional reaction from him. Mawra stands out as being the actress who has just the right ingredients of an up and coming fantastic actress. She is effective and leaves an impact in our hearts. The rest of the cast delivers good performances, and some good scenes come from Divyetta.

This should be watched for the emotional component the love story brings.