Phillauri

#Phillauri : @AnushkaSharma proved with her last production venture that a girl can make a film. She can produce a full length feature film. NH10 received good applause from the critics as well as the audiences. Now, Anushka is producing her second film, Phillauri.

I was curious after seeing the trailer of this one. Diljit Dosanjh is my favorite after Udta Punjab. Sahiba song is also praiseworthy. And friendly-ghost story of Anvita Dutt made me to go to the theater on day one.

As I was curious to know which work was not completed of Shashi (the ghost), I enjoyed the film and the process to reach the final stage. Pre-interval portion is majorly in 2017, showing the wedding ceremony of the couple. There are some light moments. But, if you are not be able to listen and see whatever the film is giving to you, then it will be a problem for you to sit about an hour. Though the flashback story is also going parallel before 20 minutes of interval. No happening is there in the interval moment.

After the interval, first major twist takes place. It was like wow. Songs come in picture. I must tell you that the costumes and sets are very well designed. Each frame is so much colorful. Punjab of now and then, looks beautiful. As well as, Anushka looks so pretty in the flashback story. And the ghost image has been created really well. Yes, then the story has its flow. So much is happening in this portion. You will never think about anything else, just open your heart, see the screen and listen melodious tunes. This is the second half.

The climax is so pure, that I'm 100% that many will loose their command of their bodies towards the seat. I mean, many will not get what it is offering. Mostly the climax would be seen slow-paced and long. But, according me, I've never seen such kind of purity in any recent or last year movies. Kudos to the last twist! Anushka is superb. As usual. As a producer too. Diljit Dosanjh is superb, he is my idol. Suraj Sharma perfectly plays his role. He can make the people laugh whenever required. Anu is also fine. Supporting cast is also good. The actor who plays the role of Shashi's brother is very good. We have seen him in Udta. Here, I like his role very much, especially, in that scene when he reads the letter and starts crying.

Music is perfect for the film. Sahiba, Dumb Dumb kind of songs are test cricket songs, which will last long. Lyrics are also containing same purity which the film offers.

Director Anshai is very well. I think, this is the debut. And I would definitely love to watch more.

Somehow, this film will not run at B.O. But, who will go to the theater to watch this, will come out with a great satisfaction of viewing or witnessing a new concept or an unusual story. Anvita Dutt and Anushka Sharma deserve a good amount of appreciation. Kudos!

This is a good movie, but it could have been better if the flashbacks weren't so lengthy. It drawls especially towards the second half. Phillauri has a crazy, goofy start with Shashi (Anushka Sharma) getting confused with the technology of the 21st Century. The makers could have added some more confusions and cut most of the flashback scenes to give it some speed. Worth a watch.

Funny in parts, sad in parts, entertaining in parts, boring as a whole. Anushka Sharma keeps a great body language to carry this character successfully. Other actors, Director and script are just below average. USP of this film lies in its Editing. Scenes are connected very beautifully throughout the movie.

Storyline Rating: 2

Acting Rating: 2 Anushka Sharma: 3 Diljit Dosanjh: 2 Suraj Sharma: 2

Direction Rating: 2

Music Rating: 2

Cinematography: 3

Editing: 4

Phillauri is Anushka Sharma's second movie as a producer after NH10 and this time she has ventured into the genre of romantic comedy.

While there are many Bollywood movies consisting of love stories, Phillauri is a movie you don't get to see everyday. Although the story of the movie was not new, the concept of the movie was something fresh and people were eager to watch the movie right after seeing the trailer. Phillauri's story is an average story but the way the story was set up was new. Anvita Dutt has written the story and screenplay of the movie and she has done a really commendable job. Anshai Lal as a debutant director has done a job worth praising.

The cast of Phillauri consist of Anushka Sharma, Diljit Dosanjh, Suraj Sharma and Mehreen Pirzada. Anushka Sharma's performance as a ghost and a long lost lover was quite heartwarming and lovely to watch. Suraj Sharma's performance as a confused NRI was quite fun to watch although he was lacking a bit of depth in the emotional side, Mehreen Pirzada's performance as his lover was quite impressive. While all the cast members did their job wonderfully, it is Diljit Dosanjh who steals the show, Diljit handled his role quite sincerely and weaved his character brilliantly in the movie.

The music is probably the best part of the movie. The music has its own uniqueness and this kind of music is rare to find in any Bollywood movie nowadays. The background scores by Samir Uddin and the songs by Shashwat Sachdev & Jasleen Royal were wonderfully composed which sincerely sticks to the theme of the movie.

The VFX and editing was very good and impressive, the cinematography was quite impressive as well.

The only downside of the movie was that it was progressing in a very slow pace and it gets slower in the second half. Certain scenes looked stretched, certain scenes could have also been avoided and more elements could have been added to the story instead.

Although the progression of the story was slow, the ending of the movie was totally unexpected, it was also quite quick owing to the fact that the movie was slow, but then again the ending was quite satisfying and truly concludes the whole movie.

Conclusion-

Although Phillauri is your average love story, it has been beautifully weaved with a new concept. The progression of the movie was slow but the performances of the cast makes you forget about the slow pacing. In short, it is a heartwarming film about love which will truly entertain you and won't make you disappointed.

I created this account specifically because the person who has reviewed this movie before me refers to it as a "rip off" of the Corpse Bride. He has either not watched Corpse Bride (in which case he can't compare the two) or he hasn't watched Phillauri (on which case he cannot post a review here). Corpse Bride and Phillauri are two different movies with two different plots. I would even go on to say that Phillauri is more appealing.

Phillauri is about a man who is manglik. (Manglik is an entirely Hindu idea, no one outside India even knows what manglik means so this can't have happened in an English movie). His parents force him to marry a tree and in the process he gets married to a ghost who lives in the tree. The first half is hilarious and the second drags on a bit but it is watchable. The end makes you feel good about watching it. Diljit Dosanjh and Anushka Sharma are amazing. The maid lead pair don't have much chemistry and not much can be expected of them since it is their first movie.

I think we should start appreciating our home grown talent rather than trying to find similarities where there are none. An original movie and a must watch.