Akshay’s scintillating comic timing as well as the alluringly powerful anti-dowry sentiments of the film ensure that there is enough to keep the audience hooked for two hours.
Akshay’s scintillating comic timing as well as the alluringly powerful anti-dowry sentiments of the film ensure that there is enough to keep the audience hooked for two hours.
When players are out of form, they are advised to spend some time at home. It seems directors Aanand L Rai and Akshay Kumar have listened to the advice and turned into a festival crowd-pleaser that celebrates the brother-sister bond, and a scathing commentary on dowry.
Raksha Bandhan
the director: Aanand L Rai
Throw: Akshay Kumar, Bhumi Pednekar, Sadia Khatib, Deepika Khanna, Smriti Shrikant, Sahmeen Kaur
Order: 108 minutes
Story: The owner of a chaat shop struggles for dowry for the marriage of his four sisters.
If viewed through the trailer, the film might seem like a retrograde idea wrapped in an old package. It’s been three decades since the Hindi film industry was asked When will this fire be extinguished (1991). Despite stringent laws, dowry deaths continue to happen, but they have stopped grabbing headlines or inspiring filmmakers.
Established in Old Delhi, in the week of golgappasIn this, Akshay plays Lala Kedarnath, who runs a chaat shop, where his specialty is water pancakes for pregnant women who want a male child. A brother of four sisters, his main aim in life is to arrange dowry for their marriages, even if it means selling his kidney. It is hard to believe that the idea of financial independence for girls has not found ground in the national capital, but writers Himanshu Sharma and Kanika Dhillon have woven into a bouquet of sentiments. Raksha Bandhan There’s enough material to keep audiences hooked for two hours, and the pace and pitch of the narrative is such that it doesn’t allow you to easily measure the gap.
politically incorrect Delhi The humor of the first half delves into the equally powerful anti-dowry sentiments of the second. In between, backed by Himesh Reshammaiah’s Punjabi tunes, Aanand revels in the traditional brother-sister love that has disappeared from Hindi cinema.
Anand, who specializes in pulling heart strings, is kind of back Tanu Weds Manu Zone which gives Akshay the platform to flex his insanely awkward bone. It’s been a while since the actor delivered such a free-flowing performance where his comic timing and emotional vulnerability are equally matched. Saadia Khatib, Dipika Khanna, Smriti Shrikant and Sahajmeen Kaur provide good support as the bindaas sisters.
Despite having a well-oiled heart, some of the creaking nuts and bolts in the narrative are pretty obvious. Kedarnath is so worried about his sisters’ marriage that he delays his marriage with his girlfriend Sapna (Bhumi Pednekar). Why can’t her sisters get love or why Sapna can’t get a job? Why girls are so focused on finding a groom at an age where they must be eager to find their feet is left without much discussion. If the brother is not in tune with the times, sisters can express their concerns. It seems that the agency of sisters is very less… as Akshay is playing the role of brother. Education of the formidable wedding planner (Seema Pahwa) is also not on the priority list.
Sometimes it seems that in the name of creating an atmosphere of toxic patriarchy every day, writers seem to take pleasure in fattening and coloring sisters. But eventually, Himanshu and Kanika return and redeem in 2022 Raksha Bandhan,
Raksha Bandhan is currently running in theaters