Director Divya Khosla makes tears a dead-on selling point for her latest Film - in the last few minutes, at least. Sanam Re wears its attire like many young people would want it to. It’s a clumsily written film that has nothing to offer except few good songs, a polished Yami Gautam and breath-taking cinematography.
Not many people would know that Sanam Re is heavily, hugely inspired by 2011 Turkish blockbuster Aşk Tesadüfleri Sever. Inspiration, by its literal meaning, isn’t a really bad thing. The original film was a really good flick that probably inspired Khosla to work on this one.
But, the problem occurs when the fine line between inspiration and plagiarism is crossed without crediting the original.
Sanam Re may well be called a bad copy of Aşk Tesadüfleri Severwith some very, very good songs. Okay, let’s just forget that it’s a copy. Let’s analyse it from a standalone viewpoint.
Sanam Re tries to slowly build a relationship between two individuals who have a lot in common than they realise. The writer Sanjeev Dutta slows cooks their love story that shall never be fulfilled according to the prophecyof Akash’s [Pulkit Samrat] grandfather, played by Rishi Kapoor.The idea to add unnecessary ingredients like Akash’s job issues, a hideous camp in Alberta, a redundant Urvashi Rautela and almost a dozen songs makes this meal tasteless.
Yami Gautam and Pulkit Samrat are fine actors. But, I must admit we’ve seen a better Samrat in Fukrey where the amount of naturalism in his postures was evident. By now, he has emerged to be a self-proclaimed Salman Khan. His emotional sequences are jarring and dialogue delivery is underwhelming. Urvashi Rautela has nothing much to offer except to look good in short outfits.
Yami Gautam is wonderful actress, but no one has made adequate use of her acting prowess to-date. Even in the path-breaking Vicky Donor, she wasn’t offered enough room to display histrionics. It doesn’t mean that director Divya Khosla has put Yami at the front of Sanam Re to perform. But, Khosla has made a little effort to let the girl shine in her latest directorial venture.
Gautam’s work feels quitereal and unlike anything we’ve seen in her appearances before.
Like other Bollywood romantic films, contrived subplots play a key role in Sanam Re. Dutta fails to treat the characters’ agony, pain and emotions with sensitivity and sophistication. As a result, the film teeters on the precipice of a schmaltzy romance that is sugarcoated with a generic plot.
Overall, Sanam Re is a generic story that hugely draws from the Turkish original Aşk Tesadüfleri Sever. Had Dutta kept the story apt like the original, Sanam Re would’ve emerged as a winner. But, Dutta’s mediocre screenplay doesn’t let the film rise above a certain level. Disappointing!
Rating: ★☆☆☆☆
