Review of the Hindi Language Fillm "Rangeela"

Rangeela is the story of Mili, a young woman from a middle class background who has high hopes of becoming a successful film star. She is part of a dance troupe but struggles to get her big break. She is close friends with Muna, an orphan, who has grown up as a near and dear part of her and her family's life. As they have grown up together, Muna has always had a soft spot for Mili and has gradually fallen in love with her but has been unable to tell her. Then, one day, Mili is spotted by a famous actor, Rajkamal, who insists that she is signed as his leading lady for his new film, Rangeela.

Will Mili become famous? Will she fall for her leading man or her childhood friend? Whose heart is broken? Sorry I can't tell you that, you'll have to watch the film yourself to find out.

Rangeela means "colours" and is a Hindi language film (aka Bollywood film). The film stars Urmila Matondkar as Mili, Aamir Khan as Muna and Jackie Shroff as Rajkamal and was produced, directed and written by Ram Gopal Verma. It was released in 1995 and runs for about 2 hours. The music for the film was by A R Rehman and the cinematography was by W B Rao.

This was Urmila's first leading role to get her noticed in Bollywood, prior to this film she has a few flops and had mostly done roles as a child artist. She played this part to perfection in this film and it's no wonder it was the film that gave Urmila her lucky break. Almost like that saying about "art reflecting true life" She was perfectly cast in this film whilst there were other actresses out there at that time who could have been cast, her freshness is probably what made her so believable in this role which she made her own. I think to this day she is most famous for her part in Rangeela. I wouldn't say I am her biggest fan but I cannot fault her acting in this film. Since Rangeela she has gone on to play some interesting role and has been careful not to be typecast she plays roles which are quite different to the norm in her films, for which she has gained a lot of respect in the Bollywood film industry such as Naina, Bhoot and Ek Hasina Thi. Visually Urmila looks stunning in Rangeela and most guys who watched this film when it was released could not help but have a crush on her! Her character is written very nicely, you don't see her changing from a nice girl next door to a successful but bitchy film star. They manage to maintain her character throughout the film as ambitious and a bit cheeky but very likeable.

Aamir Khan as Muna also could not have been cast better in my opinion. I am not a fan of his (can't explain why) but his acting skills are famous and loved by most Bollywood films. In recent years, he has scored real hits with Fanaa, Lagaan and Rang De Basanti. His character in Rangeela is quite likeable in that he plays a bit of an immature macho guy with a quick temper who is also too shy to tell the guy he loves that he loves her. You feel quite sorry for him when you see him trying to express his feelings and then have the suave Rajkamal beat him to it. For all his machismo the character of Muna is a lonely guy who just wants to love and be loved by his childhood friend.

Jackie Shroff is a man's man (as the expression goes). He's tall and well built and suave and if there was an Indian James Bond, I'd choose him to play him (erm maybe not so much now as he's just gone past 50) as he would be ideal in the role. I guess you could rate him as the Indian equivalent of Tom Selleck. I've always enjoyed watching Jackie Shroff on screen, in whatever role he plays, whether he's the leading man or supporting actor or even the bad guy, he gives each role his all and Rangeela was no exception BUT he did come out as the supporting actor against Aamir Khan. His character is written such that one empathises with him, he's not the spoilt rich actor who goes out of his way to get the woman he wants at all costs, he's played as a sensitive guy who tries to woo his leading lady with charm and dignity and without hurting anyone else.

All in all, Rangeela is a nice rags to riches story, which will warm your heart (if you enjoy that sort of story). The story is gentle and romantic and you get to see all the disadvantages of becoming famous. We don't see Mili just becoming a successful actress overnight and doing it all perfectly. You see her messing up her lines and getting her dance moves wrong and getting told off by the director. You see her character being helped along by her leading man who encourages her to keep trying till she gets it right and not give in even after many takes. You see Mili's mother trying to discourage her from acting as it's not exactly a respectable career for a middle class Indian girl who's of an age to get married but you see her soft-hearted dad encourage her to aim for the sky to reach her goals. With all the romanticism in the film there's also a strong element of reality in it. No one could watch the film and think "Oh, it's so easy to become a famous actress!"

With the film being about the film industry, especially the Indian one and with our heroine being part of a dance troupe before she gets her big break, cue the chance for the production team to throw in lots of song/dance routines as one would expect with most Bollywood films. There are more than half a dozen songs in the film, none of which made a lasting impression on me but the scenery and colourful costumes used in the songs (and throughout the film actually) can't help but impress you. If you've never seen a Bollywood film and like musicals, this would be a good film to start with. I dare you not to be dazzled by the rich and vibrant colours and delightful scenery throughout the film!

Rangeela is a family film and is rated U (Universal); there's barely any scenes of violence (and the few scenes with violence don't even have any bloodshed, just a few scuffles) and there are no scenes of nudity or bad language anywhere in the film.

Altogether, I'd give Rangeela a strong 8 out of 10. It loses marks for being a bit too long and having a few too many songs in it. If you like musicals, you might rate this higher than me.