Simran Review - A Deceptively Dark Bollywood RomCom.

Have you ever heard a critic say ‘The actor powered the film.’ Kangana Ranaut did it herself in Queen, a film that could’ve gone either way with another actress headlining. We saw it this year with Trapped, where Rajkumar Rao took Vikramaditya Motwane’s one trick horse and turned it into a masterpiece. In Hansal Mehta’s imperfect directorial, Kangana takes the film to a new level.

The film, what many critics won’t say, is also powered by the supporting actors. Kangana’s terrible father and loving mother create a great juxtaposition to the rebellious Praful Patel. Hansal’s usual films are layered and smart. The first half of Simran is smart, witty and generally moving. Kangana towers over each frame. The lines by Apurva Asrani/Kangana Ranaut are sharp. The narrative moved perfectly fine for my pace and Kangana does something not many Bollywood actors (namely the three Khans) can do. She takes a comedic character and perfectly captures her descent into madness.

It’s a valiant effort. And it works for every one of those 125 minutes that the film plays. What doesn’t work is whatever comes after the pink “INTERMISSION” logo.

The narrative is stretched, convoluted and it’s a shame that a fine actress and a fine director needed to take a barely 2 hour plus film and trim it further. The problem with Simran is its loose ends. The first being the character of Sohum Shah. Director Hansal Mehta perfectly captures him and Praf’s little moments of love. They have genuine sparks between them and Shah plays the awkward NRI dazzled by the 50 stars on the flag of the United States perfectly. In the second half, where most of his character is shown, he disappears randomly.

Which is fine for superficial characters, but the ones we’re supposed to invest in, Hansal barely scratches the surface for. But beware. The first half of Simran will crack you up, but the end parts of the first half and the entire second is a different film. It’s dark, twisty and quite frankly delicious. What tainted the film in my memory was the climactic sequences. There’s a terribly done car chase, some sloppy writing but exactly what saves it is what saves the entire film – the buildup is revealed. Kangana loses her mind and that is a delight to watch.

The film could’ve been a lot more. Why it was titled “Simran” being about Praful Patel was witty in my opinion but it was just a fleeting moment for a question that pretty much everybody had. In the end, Simran is half-baked and would’ve been a 2.5 stars from me. Kangana saves it. This DDLJ-loving chor NRI who didn’t make it to Yash Raj’s type of non-resident Indian is a new heroine in Indian cinema. Such an interesting character in a problematic script like this one is a sad to see.

I personally liked Hansal Mehta’s direction, Kangana Ranaut, and little nuances in the film like her friendship with the bar guy in Vegas, involving peanuts, beer and pink champagne. My favourite scenes where my heart truly ached were with Kangana and her father. I don’t think you should miss Simran. It’s problematic but Kangana Ranaut gives the performance of the year. Check her out. I’m going with 3 and a half stars.