Saw Bhajrangi Bhaijan.
Some films are an outcome of brilliant “components” strung together which don’t somehow, in the end, create a wonderful whole.

And then there some films where no single aspect of the film (character, script, direction, music, plot, message, cinematography …) is outstanding and yet the elements come together well and you get a watchable film. Bhajrangi Bhaija belongs to the second category. Well, sort of.

First, lets get the Bhakts out of the way. I hope I didn’t miss any point (which I allegedly totally idiotically had in PK! And was totally taken aback at the voicings of the Hindutva brigade).Even if Salman’s father is portrayed as a bigoted RSS man, and Pakistanis not evil, it seems that Bhakts aren’t unhappy and haven’t gone on twitter rampage. ( good read- (http://www.firstpost.com/…/bajrangi-bhaijaan-is-salman-khan…). So going forward Salman is the man they will love and Aamir is the one they will troll. Its settled.

Kabir Khan, the Director, has served us a sweet, syrupy, feel good drama. This almost always works for us Indians who are known to have a sweet tooth for fare of all kinds, including of the filmy variety. But Kabir Khan hasn’t managed to do a Rajkumar Hirani on us ( BB isn’t anywhere are creative or facile as PK, Munna Bhai, 3 Idiots…). He may just get there. The acclaimed critic, Raja Sen, however feels that Kabir Khan has cracked the code. I disagree.
Ultimately, cinema wise, BB is standard Bollywood fare. Suspension of disbelief, plenty of melodrama, a new signature choreography step, few big songs, big stars, a cocktail emotions, a very simple and often repeated trite message. The film is too long, the first half is actually boring, good in the second, while the climax -quintessential Bollywood.

Performances- Nawazuddin lights up the screen in just any role; the adorable girl Harshaali Malhotra is just that-adorable. Seeing Kareena Kapoor Khan after long was welcome. And she does justice even if she is wearing expensive kani shawls living a lower middle class life. Salman is Salman, awesome to his fans and okay to the rest the rest of us. In the end the endearing little girl’s quiet presence holds it all together.

This role is “god sent” for Salman. His image has taken a battering in recent times, and he needed a role that portrayed neither his typical goofy self nor the action hero persona. He needed the good guy ( being human) role and that’s exactly what he got.

Some other trivia: There are on offer a total of 1062 ( yes one thousand sixty two) shows in the NCR region alone PER DAY ( yes, I sat and counted!) Clearly the economics of film production and distribution has changed. Here are the first day Khan Sweepstakes ( meaningless) numbers: Aamir’s PK 25.8 crores; Salman’s Bhajrangi Bhaijan: 26 crores; and ShahRukh’s Happy New Year : 44 crores. To me, the quality of films was in the exact reverse order of these earnings. Bhanjrangi Bhaijan has also broken alll records in the history of Pakistani cinema & it collected 6.5 cr on opening day.

In the theatre you will hear whistles and claps and in the end you have to say films that entertain, ones that have a simple good message, those that are unpretentious, are just fine and even needed. Not all films need critical acclaim and it would be duller world if we ignored these productions. Go watch, laugh a bit, cry a bit, enjoy the ride. For some moments be a Hanuman bhakt, don’t judge the muslims, don’t judge Salman, accept Pakistan and chicken, believe in love and take a few selfies. Jai Shri Ram.