Rocky Aur Rani...: A true Bollywood saga that was much-needed in the post-pandemic world

When Karan Johar made his directorial debut with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai at just 25 years, he forever changed the landscape of Bollywood. The 1998 film starred the future Badshah of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, and Kajol, and brought to life Johar's vision of college romance, friendship, and love. With iconic additions such as Rahul's dialogues, flamboyant characters, friendship bands, Tina's hairband, her mini-skirt of course, and Kajol's transformation into the idealistic Pooja, the film has become a classic. The film may look dated if we see it through today's lens, but there is no denying that Kuch Kuch Hota Hai set the tone for its audience and revolutionised Bollywood forever.

25 years down the line, Johar is again back in the director's chair, after a gap of seven long years, with Rocky aur Rani Kii Prem Kahani - a quintessential Bollywood family drama that was actually needed at this hour. The film featuring two superstars of the Hindi film industry, Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh, is a very 'Karan-ified' movie, with a romantic storyline, a dramatic tone,  larger-than-life scenes and a heroine clad in chiffon sarees. Is it a typical Bollywood film that the film industry and even the audience had actually been craving for a very long time?

How do you define movies? For me, it should be entertaining and take me into the world of imagination at least for a couple of hours, and needless to say, Karan Johar holds a PhD in this art. Whether it's his iconic film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai or Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, among others, Johar's films truly embody what Bollywood is all about, not forgetting to mention his latest Rocky Aur Rani which is a colourful grand addition to his melodramatic repertoire.

Rocky Aur Rani – A true Bollywood saga                    

While I was watching Rocky Aur Rani – the only question that was looming large in my mind was how extravagant and dramatic everything is – whether it was Ranveer’s bright high-brand clothing or Alia’s entry in the newsroom, or Jaya Bachchan’s character of Dhanalakshmi Randhawa – who we can also call the female version of Amitabh Bachchan’s Kabhi Khusi Kabhie Gum character. It was a true-blue Karan Johar film that I was watching.

The film’s plot is something that we have seen a zillion times before – first in movies, then in daily soaps. Rocky Aur Rani somewhere feels like a mix of Two States and Vicky Donor – but presented through Karan Johar’s lens – where Ranveer Singh is presented in a very typical 'Ranveer Singh' way – flamboyant, full of energy, bright, colourful clothes and Alia Bhatt is a very hot boss babe journalist – who is fearless and has the ability to question powerful politicians.

Rocky is a typical Delhi boy who lives in a mansion with a spacious garden where half of Delhi can reside. He walks around with a protein shake in hand and speaks Hinglish, not English. Despite appearing cool and careless, like most Indian boys, he's very afraid of his father.

On the other hand, there's Rani, a typical South Delhi girl in Rocky's language. She comes from an ultra-modern Bengali family, where her mother is a professor at Delhi University and is regarded as the Shashi Tharoor of the Chatterjee family. Her father is a professional Kathak dancer, and her grandmother, Thakuma, is the heart of the family.

Rocky discovers Rani and her grandmother Jamini after doing a Google search of the name. Jamini was the name Rocky's grandfather, suffering from dementia, has been continuously taking. They help set up a meeting between their grandparents, who are the ex-lovers, and in the ensuing series of events, Rocky and Rani fall in love.
So that’s how the very Bollywood whirlwind romance starts. However, as we all know, the family often becomes the biggest obstacle in a love story, and this film is no different.

To convince their family of their relationship, Rocky and Rani swap their homes and that’s when the real drama of the film unfolds. While the plot may seem simple and ordinary at first, it manages to capture your heart. The film doesn’t even touch the word realistic – and, I agree with that but my question is why it needs to at all? Ultimately, the sole purpose of every film is to entertain the audience and Rocky aur Rani undoubtedly ticks all the boxes.
 

The nearly three-hour film takes you on a ride in a very imaginative world that no one would say no going to.  Although Alia, draped in a chiffon saree, dancing in snow-capped mountains may seem like a cliché from the Yash Raj Era, that itself is special, especially in a time of realistic content being pelted out on big screen and OTT. Don’t you think that the young viewers were missing the magic of Bollywood?  This has been Bollywood's USP- setting unrealistic, dreamy standards for generations.

Rocky Aur Rani is fused with nostalgic songs that warm your heart, a dramatic 90s love story, over-the-top fashion, heavy dialogue, emotions, and the classic Yash Chopra-style romance, - all this makes the film a perfect Bollywood package of entertainment.

In recent years, we have seen a drastic shift in the taste of the audience. Since the advent of OTT, there has been no shortage of unique and varied content. However, amidst this, we've seen how realistic cinema gained popularity. No one's really complaining but don’t you think that while the viewer preferences changed, we somehow lost the charm of very old, typical Bollywood fun—where there is love, romance, drama, and a little bit of action?

Karan Johar’s nostalgic ride         

Watching Karan Johar’s recent film felt different. Despite the predictable storyline, it was heartwarming and funny. The parallel love stories of Rocky and Rani and Jamini and Kunwar were brought beautifully to the screen, set against the retro-tunes, making everything feel so good and pleasant. The viral kissing seen between Dharmendra and his years-old crush, Shabana Azmi, was a perfect demand after the dramatic sequence and set the vibe of the film perfectly.

From cars to clothes, and then Randhawa's house, everything in this rom-com was larger than life. However, the writers have tried to salvage and minimise the exaggerated plot with decent writing. Looking at today's demand, writers Ishita Moitra, Shashank Khaitan, and Sudip Roy have tried to incorporate important themes like feminism, body positivity, the old misogynist thinking, and gender dynamics, among other things. They have also reinforced the old stereotypes of both Punjabi and Bengali communities, in both good and bad ways.

Rocky Aur Rani may be a predictable, tad too old Bollywood with a repetitive story of two totally different people falling in love with a lot of cheesiness and visual grandeur. But this all comes with soul-stirring nostalgic music that will surely touch one’s heart.

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