Band Baaja Baaraat

Starring: Anushka Sharma, Ranveer Singh;

Directed by: Maneesh Sharma;

Have you ever wondered what they mean when they talk about the chemistry between a screen pair? Watch this delightful ode to the great Indian wedding and it will solve the mystery for keeps. The super-accomplished Anushka Sharma and debutant Ranveer Singh, quite easily the discovery of the year, whip up a wondrous camaraderie in scenes written with such skill and craft in the film, set in the backdrop of weddings-sheddings in the heart of "Nayee Dilli". "Band Baaja Baaraat" is an utterly joyous and enjoyable look-see at the world of Punjabi weddings in Delhi as seen through the eyes of two wedding planners, partners in business Shruti and Bittu, who have sworn from Day 1 never to get involved with one another.

'Pyar' (love) and 'Vyapaar' (business) just don't jell. The couple keeps telling one another. But are the gods listening? The skilfully-written rom-com takes the no-holds-barred pair's relationship through a lavish labyrinth of shaadi replete with Bhangra tracks (Salim-Suleiman) that provoke your heart and feet to jump up and dance. Outwardly, the film looks like Mira Nair's "Monsoon Wedding" put into a maze of wedding festivities that seem to meander from one joyous jig to another until we come to a point where we ask in unison?now what? With a smoothness of touch that shows the hand of a writer who knows his job thoroughly, full marks to the dialogue and screenwriter Habib Faizal, "Band Baaja" changes the profile of Shruti-Buttu's relationship midway. What remains unchanged is that sense of joie de vivre which comes to a film on that rare occasion when the writer and director know where they're going and how to take the characters there without giving away the signposts to the audience.

Delhi the city of bustling streets, speeding auto-rickshaws, and restive bus stops - has never been more vibrant and alive in any other recent film. Aseem Mishra's camera penetrates the heart of the capital and the souls of its two unforgettable protagonists. Unlike Yashraj Films' "Bunty and Babli" some years ago, Bittu and Shruti are fooling no one except themselves. What does one say about the two principal performers without tripping over with the excitement of being in the midst of remarkable talent? With just three films, Anushka Sharma has grown into one of the most watchable and eloquent contemporary actresses. To the role of the spirited Shruti Anushka, she adds the kind of spice that one associates with Kajol and Rani Mukherjee. In two key sequences with Ranveer Singh - where she conceals her true feelings and much later lets them all out in a tumble of smirking hurt - Anushka blows the screen apart.

As for Ranveer, he sinks his teeth into Bittu's part with a self-confidence that comes to actors after at least 10 full-fledged films. And that too if they are gifted. Here's a new talent in a film industry dominated by jaded superstars. Ranveer's spirited screen presence and quick-silver comic timing makes the older stars look old, if not outdated. In the climax where he calls himself an ass for denying his feelings, Ranveer is a revelation. Go for this newcomer, producers, he will soon be booked for the next three years. The supporting players are largely unexposed artistes. They add to that sense of feisty freshness that runs across the film. Bravo, Yashraj for bringing such exceptional new talent to our cinema. Bravo, debutant director Maneesh Sharma for taking us through the organised chaos of traditional weddings in movements of pure pleasure and enjoyment that communicate themselves to the audience. Hours after watching the film, I've still not stopped smiling.

Yash Raj has not had the best year. They started the years with a bad Pyaar Impossible. They did have some respite in Badmaash Company but the next Lafange Parindey stuck sore too. Anushka Sharma, who was also a part of Badmaash Company, may just turn lucky for the production house as she returns with Band Baaja Baarat a simple, warm, colorful love story of two friends and business partners. Band Baaja Baarat is about Bitto Sharma (Ranveer Singh) and Shruti Kakkar (Anushka Sharma). They are friends who decide to start a business on the principle that love and business can't go together. However as they walk the steps of success they draw closer to each other till one of them falls in love.

While the first half is well paced the second half is slower but that is acceptable keeping in mind genre of the film. Also it cannot be denied that the second half is predictable, like any other romantic comedy. What works best for the film are the lead characters and the dialogues. Writer Habib Faisal, who had debuted as a director with a very likeable Do Dooni Chaar earlier this year, does what he does best. He sets the story and characters in Delhi a setting he seems to be very comfortable in. And there are a few scenes which are written well and executed equally beautifully by the director. For example the first kiss scene and the tension around it is built very well.

Technically it is as good as any Yash Raj film. It has been shot and edited very well. The songs that may seem just above par as standalone album comes alive on screen and is well placed. This is just Anushka Sharma's third release and one thing is pretty clear she is here to stay. The actress who is yet to have any release outside Yash Raj establishes that she has it in her to make it bigger than just be a subordinate to the hero. In fact in Band Baaja Baarat she leads the way as the more experienced actor between the two leads. Having said that newcomer Ranveer Singh shows extraordinary screen presence and confidence. What works for him is that the character is extremely likable.

If you bump into a bunch of young 'filmies' in Mumbai's western suburbs, you may be forgiven to believe you'd walked into a Delhi University alumni meet instead. Batches range from early '90s to late 2000s. Practically everyone working in movies these days seem to have once called Delhi their home. It's bizarre. Shah Rukh Khan, I suspect, was the catalyst not for their creativity, but their move to Bollywood. Few of these filmmakers have turned directors by now (Dibakar Bannerjee, Imtiaz Ali et al), many are screenwriters (Jaideep Sahni etc), most make for young army of assistant directors working their butt off to tell a story they know best.

Delhi is what they grew up on, and know best. It inspires Mumbai movies. Repeatedly. This is not a surprise. The music bears a strong mix of Bhangra. Here of course, it sounds entirely a derivative of tracks from Dev.D (Pardesi), Tashan (Dil Haara Re), Delhi 6 (Yeh Dilli Hai Mere Yaar), Aisha (Mithi Mithi Bol). The dialogues are in colloquial Hindi, 'slanguage' more common to the north. The hero of this subaltern imagination should be called Bunty. Always. He's Bittoo here (Ranvir, looks the part). He talks while he eats with his mouth wide open, has just graduated from Kirori Mal. His father owns sugarcane fields in Saharanpur that he'd rather not return to.

The girl (Anushka Sharma, incredibly at ease) is boisterously confident in her manners. Her professional ambitions don't interfere with her conservative personal dreams (kids, marriage, parents' happiness). She belongs to the Punjabi family of Kakkars from one of capital's old-world mid-class housing colonies. Bittoo and Shruti start a successful wedding planners' "binness" right after finishing college. This is good move, no doubt, given a culture that perennially envies its neighbour, thrives on throwing money at weddings and other personal processions to show wealth off. The leading couple makes for an intelligent tag team. They pull off huge weddings, profit from people's vanities, stay professional with each other, truly enjoy their work.

A random one-night stand pulls them apart. They mix pleasure ("pyar") with business ("vyapaar"). Never the two should meet. The guy gets wary, the girl feels vulnerable. They split. The nuances here, smartly written, are fairly known. Whether the act itself is complete parody, you will neither fully figure, nor frown much over. This world is any day more relatable than duffers drivin' around daddy's Ducati in downtown West, known to Bollywood NRIs alone. But the realism is pretty much where the enjoyment ends. Or begins.

This is still a fable around the macho hero and his bubbly heroine. There's already an issue if you hope this aggro Jat boy doesn't get the joyous Janakpuri girl. Ever. They should remain platonic friends. So here's a romantic comedy, when a comedy alone would have worked. There's no proverbial chemistry between the leading couple, and that makes for a film of its own. Not this one. Another Delhi movie, maybe. "Love degi, degi love? (Will you give me love)," he seriously proposes. You know what the answer's going to be. But you want to laugh. Damn!