Barfi!: Re-defining love in Indian Cinema
“Barfi” as the name sounds unusual, so is the movie. Some movies stay with you long after it is over, “Barfi” is such a movie.
“Barfi” tells the tale of Barfi or should we say Murphy (Ranbir Kapoor) who is deaf & dumb and who falls in love with Shruti (Ileana D’cruz), but soon gets dumped by her due to his impairment, then enters Jhilmil (Priyanka Chopra) a autistic, and how Barfi & Jhilmil form a bond and which then translates into love forms the crux of the story…
The movie’s story & screenplay by Anurag Basu is brilliant, every scene is written with utmost perfection imparting the right emotion. Basu pays tribute to the legend Charlie Chaplin in many scenes. Dialogues by Sanjeev Dutta though less gel with the screenplay and create the right impact.
The highlight off course is the performances, Ranbir Kapoor proves that you do not need dialogues to convey the right emotion; his powerhouse performance makes Barfi a memorable character. Ranbir should be the top contender for all the awards this year. Priyanka Chopra as the autistic Jhilmil is brilliant. In some sequences Chopra ‘s performance gives a new dimension, definitely a award winning performance. Ileana D’cruz as Shruti aptly supports with her subtle yet superb portrayal, definitely an actress to watch out for. The rest of the cast like Saurabh Shukla, Roopa Ganguly, Ashish Vidyarthi & Akash Khurana also do a brilliant job. Overall every actor no matter how small the role is, has done justice.
The captain of the ship, director Anurag Basu has created a classic, though I would not compare him to the legendary directors but with Barfi, Anurag has definitely created a niche for himself. The other departments like editing by Akiv Ali gives an edge to the pace. Ravi Varman’s cinematography is breathtaking, it creates the right ambience. The production design by Rajat Poddar creates the 70’s well.
Music in Barfi plays a vital role, Pritam does a superb job, I think one of his best this year. The lyrics by Swanand Kirkire, Neelesh Mishra, Ashish Pandit & Saeed Quadri does justice to the scores.
Overall an exceptional movie and A MUST WATCH, 5 stars from me….