Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi
(translates as "a match made by God")
2008
4/5 stars

Vivacious, beautiful Taani (Anushka Sharma) suffers a catastrophe on the eve of her wedding, and at her father's request, she marries his trusted student Suri (Shah Rukh Khan).  Serious, nerdy Suri fell in love with her at first sight, but Taani tells him she'll never be able to love him, nor be happy and light-hearted again.  Suri takes on the role of a fun-loving Raj in her dancing class, hoping to make her laugh again, and hoping to use Raj to help Taani fall in love with Suri.  Things don't work as Suri had hoped, and he sees his chance of happiness with Taani become slim.

In this romantic drama, Khan plays an average man as Suri, and brash and loud as Raj, neither the handsome or charming character that is his usual role. This he does suprisingly well.  Sharma, in her first role, was excellent, and fully believable in her emotions. While the songs and choreography were average, the cinematography, locations, and sets were lovely.

I was conflicted as to the credibility of Taani's reaction to the truth, but otherwise found this to be a sweet and enjoyable film with a beautiful message, celebrating unselfish love.

Special appearances by Kajol, Bipasha Basu, Lara Dutta, Preity Zinta, and Rani Mukerji .

Movie available for free through Amazon Prime.

Badrinath Ki Dulhania

Badrinath Ki Dulhania
(translates as "Badrinath's bride")
2017
3/5 stars

Badrinath (Varun Dhawan), spoiled younger son of a wealthy family, meets Vaidehi (Alia Bhatt) at a wedding and falls in love with her.  She refuses his marriage offer several times, as they don't have similar backgrounds, or the same ideas about women, careers, and dowries. However, he at last persuades her to agree.  On their wedding day, Vaidehi makes a decision that rocks Badri's world and he is forced to mature and decide if he will be like his overbearing, misogynistic father, or become his own person.

On the face of it, this sounds like a delightful movie, and parts of it are.  There are some good songs, solid acting, lovely costumes, and great cinematography.  Dhawan and Bhatt have good chemistry together.  However, the plot is weak in parts, disconcerting in others, and overall the film is not memorable.

Movie available through Amazon Prime.

Jai Ho

Jai Ho
(translates as "Let Victory Prevail")
2014
4/5 stars

Jai (Salman Khan) is an ordinary man with a desire to help others.  He formulates a plan in which, instead of saying "thank you" for a kind act, the recipient will vow to help three others, telling them to do the same.  In helping others, Jai crosses the local political family, starting a feud.

This is a serious and violent drama with a most positive message, encouraging the doing of good, and celebrating the power of the common man.  It is an engrossing film, with an exceptionally good supporting cast.  Khan wears the same serious face throughout most of the movie, and does little acting other than action, but that doesn't lesson the film.  The music is good, the choreography nice, and the costumes often beautiful.  Overall, this is an intense, yet feel-good film, in the best Bollywood style.

Note: Cast includes Tabu as Geeta, and Daisy Shah as Rinky.

Movie available through Amazon Prime.

Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge

Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge
(translates as "the big-hearted will take away the bride")
1995
5/5 stars

Simran (Kajol) lives in London and is betrothed to the son of her father's best friend in Punjab. The summer before she is to be married, she takes a European rail vacation with friends, and meets Raj (Shah Rukh Khan). They don't realize that they have fallen in love until they have parted. Raj then follows Simran to India, determined to win her father's approval for their marriage.

In this romantic comedy/drama, family values and respect for elders is placed in high regard, even while portraying that the most hardened of hearts must be softened in the face of true love. Both Kajol and Khan are excellent in their roles, maturing their characters perfectly. The supporting cast is stellar. While there is no breath-taking choreography, the songs are lovely and memorable. The costumes, cinematography, locations, and sets are all beautifully done. Overall, this is a funny, sweet, and serious movie that is a must- watch for any Bollywood fan.

Movie available through Amazon Prime.

Jab Harry Met Sejal

Jab Harry Met Sejal
(translates as "when Harry met Sejal")
2017
4/5 stars

Sejal (Anushka Sharma) looses her engagement ring on a family European tour. She convinces the guide, Harry (Shah Rukh Khan), to retrace the tour in order to find the lost ring. While searching for the ring, they find what neither was expecting: love.

This is a cute, feel-good film about the changing power of love. Sharma is charming in her role as the naive and sweet Sejal. Though not a serious role, Khan (debonair as always) does interject some emotion. The music was good, but there was very little choreography. While not a deep plot, it is enjoyable and was overall entertaining.

Suryavanshi

Suryavanshi 
1992
4/5 stars

The wicked princess Suryalekha (Amrita Singh) falls in love with the one man who is able to defeat her champions. This man, Suryavanshi Vikram Singh (Salman Khan) deceives her, then leaves her in disgrace. Incensed, she kills herself and her ghostly self torments the area as she waits for Suryavanshi to be reborn and return to her.

Hundreds of years later, an archaeologist uncovers part of Suryalekha's palace. His team, including his daughter Sonia (Sheeba) and son-in-law Vicky (Salman Khan), visit the palace grounds. Suryalekha's spirit is convinced that Vicky is Suryavanshi reincarnated and calls to him. It is left to Sonia to overcome the evil with her love and protect her husband.

This is, at times, a silly movie, and sometimes overly dramatic. That said, it's still an enjoyable tale, full of action, romance, the supernatural, and music. There is much more to the plot that can be explained in a brief synopsis, and the romance was a good story. Singh was fantastic as the beautiful and evil Suryalekha, and Sheeba's portrayal of the opposing pure and lovely Sonia was equally good. Both of Khan's characters were less than three-dimensional, but still appealing. The most unfortunate aspect of the entire movie was the light brown hair/beard of Suryavanshi, which looked simply goofy on Khan. The music and choreography were good, as were the costumes for these numbers. Overall, while bordering on the ridiculous in parts, it was an entertaining movie and a good example of the Bollywood of the 1990s.

Movie available on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/sh1wwILGvp0

Shaadi Karke Phas Gaya Yaar

Shaadi Karke Phas Gaya Yaar
(translates as "I'm screwed by getting married")
2006
3/5 stars

This movie begins as a romance, when Ayaan (Salman Khan) meets model Ahana (Shilpa Shetty) and falls in love with her. After finding her diary, he woos and marries her with the help of the information her diary provides. Then the movie becomes a domestic drama, with their marriage on the rocks--with the diary as the apex--and the viewer is left wondering if love will be enough to reconcile them.

The plot starts off interesting, but after a while, the arguments become tiresome. The resolution happens too quickly, and is not fully believable. Khan goes from charming to stubborn well, but the viewer will be conflicted as to whether he is in the right. Ahana's character is too spoiled and sullen to be fully likable; whether this is the fault of the actress or the writing is uncertain. There are some quite good songs, but the choreography is below average. Overall, this is an okay movie, but not one I would universally recommend.