'Bombay Velvet' review: Despite earnest performances, the film somehow gets derailed

Film: BOMBAY VELVET 

Rating: **

Starring: Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Karan Johar, Kay Kay Menon and others

Directed by: Anurag Kashyap

WHAT’S IT ABOUT:

There are two kinds of indulgent cinema. One that is outrageous and over-the-top that people like Anees Bazmee and Prabhu Deva indulge in. The second is affected films heralded by the Anurag Kashyaps. After watching Bombay Velvet, you start wondering which among the two is worse. Balraj (Ranbir Kapoor) landing up in Bombay (not Mumbai yet) two years after India’s independence. With dreams in his eyes and guts of steel, he aims for bigger things in life. The editor of a leading newspaper, Kaizad Khambatta (Karan Johar) spots him and decides to help him reach his goal. Balraj now becomes Johnnie Balraj and helps Khambatta in all his dirty deeds. In this process, he encounters singer Rosie Noronha (Anushka Sharma) who also has a tragic past. When Khambatta opens a swanky club called Bombay Velvet and Rosie joins in as the lead singer there, life seems set for Balraj. But there are bigger issues to follow with the city of Bombay going in for a landmark geographical change. How Balraj gets engulfed in the crossfire leading to his eventual realisation is what the rest of the film is about.
 
WHAT’S HOT:

It’s difficult to look for the highs in this one except for the lead performances. Ranbir Kapoor gives his best to the role. Despite being the film’s protagonist, he doesn’t have a single scene in the film that you would term as standout. Anushka Sharma is earnest but let down by a badly sketched-out character. It is possible that in order to give the film some shape, a lot was edited and chopped. Maybe that’s why you miss the moments and the chemistry between the lead pair. The only consolation in the film is Karan Johar who brings a lot of dignity to the character of Khambatta. In some scenes, he exudes fear too. He carries off the role with his characteristic elan, which is commendable since this is totally outside his comfort space.
 
WHAT’S NOT:

At a length of almost two hours and forty minutes, Bombay Velvet is a drag. The director tries too hard for a film noir effect. All the effort is towards the production design, the costumes are a waste in the absence of a story and characters that connects. The screenplay is erratic; the film is devoid of any drama that would elevate the going-ons. Even the production design, which tries to sell you vintage Bombay, sadly looks like a set.  The film is over styled. Actors have been made to wear outlandish costumes and garish make-up – was this truly the Bombay of yore? The entire love track between Balraj and Rosie has no emotional appeal. Kashyap has added multiple characters in the film – most of them meander through without any participation in the script. Actors like Satyadeep Mishra and Vivaan Shah have been wasted. Amit Trivedi’s music doesn’t help in any way – except for the Jaata Kahaan Hai Deewane remix, which also works purely because of its everlasting melody. Bombay Velvet will go down in history as the film that had everything going for it – the actors, the budget, the scale and the promotion. And still somehow got derailed.
 
WHAT TO DO:

If you are someone who wears velvet everyday, watch it.