Gunday, starring Ranveer Singh, Arjun Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra in the lead roles, released this Valentine’s Day. From the promos, it was quite evident that it’s not really a lovey-dovey kind of film and was in fact, being touted as a ‘Bro-com’. In all their promotional appearances on various TV shows, the chemistry between the two leading men looked very entertaining and this movie showed immense promise.
Gunday begins with two young orphaned boys, Bikram and Bala who are the victims of the 1970 Bangladesh War and look for means to survive. They manage to flee to Calcutta from Bangladesh and soon find themselves in the illegal coal mafia. They of course start small and ultimately make it big to become big illegal coal barons. Their unbreakable friendship is the secret of their success and though they grow up in similar circumstances, the 2 friends are quite different from each other. Bala, played by Arjun Kapoor is the more hot-headed and reckless one, while Bikram (Ranveer Singh) is intelligent, sensible and calculative. They both fall head over heels in love with a cabaret dancer, Nandita and soon find themselves competing for her attention. Like in all clichés, love comes in between friendship and soon the 2 friends can no longer see eye to eye. In the midst of all this, the police headed by ACP Satyajit Sarkar, essayed by Irfan Khan are behind them. Add a few twists and turns and not to forget a few forgettable song sequences, and that’s what Gunday is all about.
To put it simply, Gunday is a big disappointment. Its too long and you find your mind wavering several times during the movie. Priyanka Chopra is wasted completely and any newcomer starlet could have done this role just as well. I was surprised why a powerhouse of talent like Irfan Khan chose to do this movie too. The music is just about average, with ‘Tune Maari Entriyaan’ being the best of the lot. Some scenes are completely unwanted, specially the fight sequence between Bala and Bikram where both of them are shown flexing their well-oiled bodies for a good 2-3 minutes. Taking heroes having good bodies is definitely a good idea, but showing off their muscles just for the heck of it, is not a good idea at all.
But there are some positives as well. The 2 child actors who play the young Bala and Bikram are superb and very convincing. The 2 leading men, Ranveer and Arjun too form the backbone of the film and put up very sincere performances. While Arjun hams through a couple of scenes, Ranveer Singh is the show-stealer who carries the entire film on his shoulders. I just wish their on-screen chemistry was as good as their off-screen presence.
Overall, Gunday is just about average-fare. I would give it a 2.5 out of 5 and would recommend you catch ‘Hasee Toh Phasee’ over ‘Gunday’ if you’re looking for a Valentine themed movie. But if you’re a Ranveer Singh fan, don’t miss this one!
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