Heroine: A bland order served hot

KARACHI: 

Due to his films Corporate, Fashion and Traffic Signal, director Madhur Bhandarkar is best known for creating narratives based on the dirty realities of various industries.

By coherently depicting the truth, Bhandarkar has for the most part kept his audience captivated and entertained with some thrilling plots. But his latest production Heroine — a story based on the industry he is a part of — is as superficial and redundant as the fake English accents in the film.  Heroine is one of the most half-hearted attempts at depicting present day Bollywood — a sheer disappointment one was not expecting from a seasoned director like Bhandarkar.

The film narrates the story of a young actor Mahi Arora, played by Kareena Kapoor, who is trying to find her place in Bollywood but is constantly held back by relationship blues, a permanent identity crisis and regular alcohol abuse. Bhandarkar’s portrayal of Bollywood is too simplistic and confined; while he correctly demonstrates the presence of industrialists, ministers and cricketers at Bollywood parties alongside the actual film stars, he has simultaneously depicted a very limited aspect of their lives — showing they are all chasing after sex, relationships and drugs.

As a viewer who is well aware of the “it’s lonely at the top” stereotypes attached to showbiz, one is constantly hoping for something more, such as Bhandarkar’s other productions. Unfortunately, your perception of Bollywood will not change much since Bhadarkar has simply played with already existing generalisations. And that is not the worst part — the script is weak and unstructured; if you go out for a cigarette break and return, you will not have missed anything.

Kareena’s character on the other hand is dull. Despite Bebo’s brilliant acting skills, her role is as hollow as an empty barrel and depicts nothing in particular which is specific to Bollywood. Mahi is craving for fame, but her symptoms and actions are quite similar to any other woman suffering from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. What is even more disappointing is the fact that after going through so much, her character fails to evolve, leaving the audience frustrated.

Just when you think the movie’s pace has picked up — thanks to the stimulating item number “Halkat Jawani” — and lifted the audiences’ hopes and expectations, the second half takes a tragic plunge to its death. Not only does the film become even more predictable, it also drags on for no justifiable reason. After the climax, you may feel like a prisoner who has been held captive for a few hours.

While some witty one-liners such as “Hamari industry mein zip aur zabaan dono band rakhni chahiye” do fare well with the audience, apart from Kareena’s stellar performance, there is not much to remember the film by. Bhandarkar fans will be disappointed if they were expecting a bolder, more controversial depiction of his film fraternity. Since he is someone who is part of Bollywood, one expects him to have created a remarkable film. Unfortunately, his version is dreary and bland.