Ranbir Kapoor-Alia Bhatt’s Cinematic Astra Burns Bright With Rousing Visuals

Story

Brahmastra
begins
with
Guruji
(Amitabh
Bachchan)’s
voiceover
where
the
thespian
narrates
the
legend
of
the
Astras
and
how
a
group
of
warriors
known
as
Brahmansh
wielded
these
weaponry
which
gave
them
energy-radiating
powers.

To
protect
these
‘astras’
from
the
Dark
Forces,
this
ancient
order
has
been
working
centuries
after
centures.
Since
the
contemporary
generations
have
forgotten
about
their
existence,
these
modern
Brahmansh
continue
to
guard
the
‘astras’
under
secret
identities
while
holding
influential
positions
in
the
society.

Out
of
all
these
armaments,
Brahmastra,
which
is
considered
to
be
the
Lord
of
all
the
weapons,
is
split
into
three
pieces
and
scattered
across
the
country
to
keep
them
away
from
the
Dark
Forces.
It
is
guarded
by
some
powerful
people
in
the
society.

Meanwhile,
Shiva
(Ranbir
Kapoor),
a
happy-go-lucky
orphan
who
is
a
DJ
by
profession,
comes
across
London-bred
Isha
(Alia
Bhatt)
in
a
Durga
Puja
Pandal
and
it’s
love
at
first
sight
for
him.
Slowly
as
their
romance
blossoms,
Shiva
is
tormented
by
some
mysterious
scary
visuals
which
makes
him
realise
that
a
dark
force
led
by
Junoon
(Mouni
Roy)
is
seeking
the
scattered
pieces
of
Brahmastra
for
something
sinister.

As
the
visuals
get
intense,
Shiva
slowly
also
discovers
his
super
powers
and
that
he
can
unleash
fire
from
his
palms.
The
rest
of
the
film
revolves
around
how
our
hero
embarks
on
a
journey
with
his
ladylove,
which
also
holds
an
answer
to
his
past.

Direction

Director
Ayan
Mukerji
deserves
a
pat
on
his
back
for
pulling
off
this
mammoth
project
despite
facing
several
roadblocks.
For
an
audience
feeding
on
a
staple
of
Marvel
Cinematic
Universe,
the

Yeh
Jawaani
Hai
Deewani
director
brings
to
the
table
a
platter
filled
with
some
good
performances
and
jaw-dropping
visuals.

With
his
Astraverse,
Mukerji
has
definitely
pushed
the
envelope
for
Indian
cinema
by
ditching
the
tried-and-tested
formula
to
prove
that

‘Hum
kisi
se
kam
nahi.’

On
the
flip
side,
Shiva
and
Isha’s
love
story
is
hardly
engaging
and
the
inconsistent
writing
makes
things
even
more
tiresome.
Hussain
Dalal
and
Ayan
Mukerji’s
dialogues
come
across
as
obsolete.
Also,
the
film
lacks
a
certain
amount
of
emotional
depth
which
was
required
to
make
you
‘feel’
for
the
characters.

Performances

From
a
lad
trying
to
make
the
best
of
every
situation
to
becoming
a
superhero
in
his
own
way
by
conquering
his
fear,
Ranbir
Kapoor
as
Shiva
gives
us
a
glimpse
of
his
metamorphosis
as
an
actor.
There’s
a
certain
amount
of
affable
charm
that
he
oozes
in
every
frame
even
when
the
writing
loses
its
grip.

It’s
undeniable
that
Alia
Bhatt
is
luminescent
and
brings
in
equal
doses
of
sugar
and
spice
in
her
performance.
However,
her
on-screen
chemistry
with
Ranbir
Kapoor
lacks
a
spark.

Amitabh
Bachchan
offers
his
sturdy
shoulders
to
balance
this
magnum
opus
and
that
works
in
favour
of
this
movie.
Mouni
Roy
flaunts
her
shade
of
grey
as
Junoon
and
delivers
a
convincing
act.
Shah
Rukh
Khan
and
Nagarjuna
Akkineni
in
their
respective
brief
cameos
add
value
to
this
visual
extravaganza.

Technical
Aspects

Three
cheers
for
Prime
Focus
VFX
for
making
sure
that

Brahmastra
turns
out
to
be
a
visual
spectacle
for
the
audience.
Be
it
the
portion
revolving
around
SRK
or
the
car
scene
featuring
Shiva,
Isha
and
another
character,
the
film
has
some
‘heart-in-your
mouth’ moments.

Cinematographer
Sudeep
Chatterjee
and
his
team
keep
the
frames
in
the
film
bright
and
vibrant.
Prakash
Kurup’s
editing
could
have
been
a
little
more
taut.

Music

Pritam’s
music
in

Brahmastra
is
a
mixed
bag.
Our
pick
from
the
music
album
is
Arijit
Singh’s
melody
‘Kesariya’
which
is
already
topping
the
music
charts
and
the
beautifully
picturized
‘Deva
O
Deva.’

Verdict

There’s
a
scene
in

Brahmastra
where
an
injured
Amitabh
Bachchan
tells
Ranbir
Kapoor,

“Jaa
Shiva,
aag
laga
de.”
While
Ayan
Mukerji
and
team
do
set
the
screens
on
fire
with
their
immersive
storytelling
and
grand
canvas,
some
of
it
gets
doused
by
the
insipid
love
story.
Nevertheless,
this
Astraverse
still
manages
to
burn
bright
and
spread
light.