PHILLAURI!! -*Reviews & BO collections*- - Page 5

I really want this film to do well so that Anushka can make more films as a producer

i am also from phillaur 😳

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Phillauri Movie Review

1 hour agoby Indicine Team2 Comments4 min read


Anushka Sharma made quite a debut as a producer with NH10, which not only earned her accolades but also made enough money to give her name as a producer of some credibility. Now she's back with the quirky looking Phillauri, which is again another high concept based movie. The promos have promised a funny film but also highlight a dramatic angle. Does the movie entertain like a Hindi film is meant to? And does Anushka Sharma shine again?

Story: Kanan (Suraj) is in his mid 20s and he's being coaxed into marrying his childhood sweetheart Anu (Mehreen Pirzada). But he's manglik and has to marry a tree, which he does. Only later does he realise that he's not only married the tree but also the ghost who used to reside in the tree. Enter Shashi (Anushka), the friendly ghost. Kanan and Shashi have playful exchanges at first but things get interesting when the story keeps going back and forth in time. We get to know about Shashi's erstwhile life, when she loved an Awara poet of her village called Phillauri (Diljit). But she's a heartbroken ghost because the poet Phillauri left her. The rest of the movie is about a series of events culminating in the audience getting to know the true reasons for Phillauri's act.

Screenplay and Direction: It would be the easiest thing to brush off Phillauri as frivolous, but director Anshai Lal has filled his screenplay with all the usual Hindi film trappings in the high concept space that he is operating out of. The story sounds ridiculous on paper, but when it comes alive on screen it shines. There's enough entertainment in Phillauri to keep the audience hooked throughout the length of the duration. What is even more interesting is that Anshai makes quite a few important sweeping statements about our country and our women and some of our rituals. He takes his time to tell his story and to layout the background of the characters but once he gets going, he doesn't stop. But the pace does drop off in the second half and the fun of the first half also goes missing to an extent after the interval.

Phillauri Movie Review
Phillauri Movie Review
Phillauri looks like a deft movie because it has been shot so well. The camerawork is absolutely top notch with very carefully crafted frames and scenes. The production design makes the film look a lot bigger in scale than it normally would have been. The visual effects are stunning as the CGI ghost character doesn't tow the stereotypical line of a Bollywood bhoot, they almost reinvent the Bollywood bhoot. The editing could have been tighter because the film didn't need to be almost 2.5 hours long. The music of Phillauri suits the nature, even though none of the songs have become Bonafide chartbusters. The songs in the movie, work.

Acting: Anushka Sharma is in fine-fine form as Shashi, the friendly ghost. She's endearing as the bhoot and beautifully graceful as the lover scorned by a moron poet/lover. She shows her genuine ability to make you care for the character. She makes Phillauri, the movie. Diljit Dosanjh does well too. He looks the part, but his acting does come across as too laidback in a few scenes. You know Anushka cares for this man, but you don't realise why she loves this man so much. Diljit doesn't do justice in that aspect. Suraj Sharma is the perennially confused 21st century kid, and he portrays that well. As a Bollywood debut, Phillauri is as non-conventional as it could get. Props to the producers for choosing Suraj for this role. Mehreen Pirzada looks ethereal, is charming and does justice to her part.

Conclusion: Phillauri is Bollywood's take on a supernatural comedy and kick starts the annual woman oriented film festival (Naam Shabana, Begum Jaan, Noor to follow). It is a different movie which won't appeal to all sections of the audience but it is a cute movie with a story of heartbreak and longing at its core. Anushka Sharma gives this little film a heart and she's endearing. If you love her, then you must not miss Phillauri. Even if you are not in love with Anushka, Phillauri will still entertain you provided you're open and receptive to all genres of movies.

Pros:

Anushka Sharma makes the movie so charming
The cinematography is top class and so is the production design
The genre is a high concept one
The visual effects is world class
Inspired casting of Suraj Sharma
Cons:

Diljit disappoints
The music is not chartbuster material and only works in the movie
The pace slackens in the second half
Feels a bit too long, editing should have been tighter
Rating:
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Phillauri Is Fair In North Low Elsewhere

Phillauri had a fair opening it in the North with decent collections in multiplexes of Punjab and at select multiplexes of Delhi city at 30-35% but elsewhere the collections were low. The overall opening is in the 20% range and it is about the growth. Even Punjab and Delhi will have to grow if the film is to sustain as the opening is better in these places but it can't be called good.

The film seems a mix of a love story set in the past and a modern day rom - com and it is the latter which has probably hurt the film as though it seems to be set in a small team the feel seems very urban and that limits the film.

Still the film has chances to succeed if the film can show a good up turn in business on Saturday and Sunday. Mumbai circuit will be crucial for the film especially places like Mumbai city, Thane and Pune as its hard to see the film racking up good numbers in East and South but if these places in Mumbai circuit can do well added to North India then there is potential for a good run. The rom - com factor also means the film will be mainly supported by high end multiplexes barring North where the presence of Diljit will take the film to a wider reach.

There were a couple of other films released like Anarkali Of Aarah and Bhanwarey with very limited collections. The former has some shows at multiplexes so the collections will be far better than the latter.

The Ghost Bride

smitavkumar
Rated
3.5
Desimartini | Updated - March 24 01:37, 2017 IST
3.5
DM (168 ratings)
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Verdict - A romance at heart, Phillauri wins because of its unusual story, humour & some good performances

First off, this is not a usual ghost movie. There are no haunted houses or doors going squeak or blood curdling screams. The ghost is quite Disney-like and civilized. The movie is more about two parallel love stories. One that of Kannan and Anu who are the modern couple gamely going along with the tree wedding and the other story is of Shashi and Phillauri a musician, set almost 100 years back. Both the stories develop in parallel though the ghost's story is the more important one and is the central focus.

The movie progresses fairly quickly to the interval without much happening making you fear about the whole story being told in the second half or worse being crammed into the last half hour, which happens quite often. But it unwinds at a relaxed and unhurried pace. At times, maybe too relaxed, especially in Shashi's parts where it begins to drag a bit. But, overall, thanks also to some funny bits it keeps moving to a very interesting conclusion.

I like the fact that Anoushka as a producer uses her movies to also talk a bit about women's roles in society. Here, Shashi is a widely-read poet but she writes under a pen name as girls from good families don't do such things to entertain audiences. History is replete with exams of women who used pen names to gain wider readerships, such as Emily Bronte, Jane Austen and J.K Rowling. All the female characters here are strong and sensible and perfectly capable of taking care of themselves and I like to think this is Anoushka's stamp as a producer.

The music of the movie is worth a mention and I think it will grow on me as I listen to the album more. Watch out for the interesting scene on how recordings were done in the old days.

Anoushka as the ghost is all shiny and as Shashi, the poet she lis intelligent and sensitive. Diljit Dosanjh as Phillauri the singer is a heart stealer. I loved him in Udta Punjab and now his brand of soft intensity has made me a pucca fan. Suraj Sharma as Kannan, the man who must marry a tree manages to inject the right dose of humour when needed.

Phillauri is ultimately a love story prefect for a date night. It is worth a watch in spite of the flagging pace at times. Can take kids.

Phillauri Movie Review: Anushka Sharma Gets Into The Spirit Of This Unconventional Entertainer
Phillauri Movie Review: The film is an unconventional Bollywood entertainer that is watchable all the way. It does not rely on star power
Saibal Chatterjee | March 24, 2017 15:25 IST

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Phillauri Movie Review: Anushka Sharma Gets Into The Spirit Of This Unconventional Entertainer
Phillauri Movie Review: Anushka Sharma is a rebel daringly ahead of her times
Genre:Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
Cast:Anushka Sharma, Diljit Dosanjh, Suraj Sharma
Director:Anshai Lal
SPOILERS AHEAD


Phillauri, Anushka Sharma's second home production
, is an entire constellation away from the dystopian darkness of NH10. This is despite the earlier film's director (Navdeep Singh) and writer (Sudip Sharma) serving as creative producers on this intriguing, mildly eccentric cinematic project. It not only fuses the past and the present, it also brings the here and now into the same frame as a mythic twilight zone. Miraculously, the leaps do not appear unwarrantedly outlandish. The film revolves around a century-spanning love story that takes into its sweep a budding romance that blossoms in a village off Phillaur, in the era of Gauhar Jaan, the freedom struggle and the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Scripted by Anvita Dutt and helmed by debutant Anshai Lal, Phillauri is a lively, lighthearted drama enlivened with some fine cinematic touches and elements of fantasy inspired by Tim Burton's 2005 stop motion animated film, Corpse Bride.

The basic plot device that drives Phillauri is derivative all right, but the film
, as a whole, alternates between the quirky and the intense steadily enough to keep the macabre atmosphere of the Burton film away. There is no land of the dead in Phillauri. When we do actually see a crowd of ghosts in the somewhat credibility-stretching climax, their spectral presence provides the backdrop for an affirmation of life and a celebration of love.


Phillauri Review
: The film is a lively, lighthearted drama enlivened with some fine cinematic touches


In the two-toned narrative, the two time zones are distinctly demarcated by the textures and colour palettes that cinematographer Vishal Sinha employs. When the narrative breaks away from the boisterous, colourful present, the audience is taken back in time to an idyllic hamlet where robust young men sing and dance and dainty young girls furtively seek to break free from their domestic shackles.

The two love stories in Phillauri, separated by precisely 98 years, run parallel to each other. A woman who is literally a ghost from the past serves as a sombre link between a hoary saga of unrequited love and a contemporary tale of young lovers grappling with major confusions and doubts.

The film opens with a young rapper Kanan Gill (Suraj Sharma) returning to Amritsar from Canada to wed his childhood sweetheart Anu (debutante Mehreen Pirzada). His horoscope is believed to be blighted. So, before the actual nuptials can take place, he is enjoined to marry a tree in order to cast away bad luck. He gives in despite strong reservations. And that is where Kanan's troubles take root. After the marriage ceremony, the tree is cut down and a spirit that has lived on its branches for decades is now not only left homeless, but she is also convinced that she is the 26-year-old lad's bride.

The harmless ghost hovers around Kanan and that drive a wedge between him and his would-be bride. The former is completely baffled; the latter is understandably angry and sad. Members of the two families, on their part, have no clue what has hit them. Pandemonium reigns supreme. Their travails are occasionally funny, but the film warms up well and truly only when it intermittently travels back to the past to bring us the tale of the gentle Shashi (Anushka Sharma), a girl lives with her doctor-brother.

Poetry is what keeps Shashi going - it brings her into contact with the village singer Roop Lal (Diljit Dosanjh), who she and her best friend believe is the poet Phillauri whose verses are published in the local journal. This guides the tale towards Gauhar Jaan and her 78 rpm discs (referred to in the film as tawa).

But Gauhar Jaan isn't Roop Lal's only inspiration. One day, he receives a mouthful from Shashi, who berates him for the vacuity of his songs. The chastened man resolves to turn a new leaf and endeavour to live up to her high expectations. The two fall in love but there are obstacles in the way - the lovers do not belong to the same class - and these turn of the 20th century avatars of Mirza and Sahiban aren't destined to unite in matrimony.

Phillauri, amid the tragic turns and comic moments, not only takes playful potshots at the superficiality of modern relationships, the pomp and show of big fat weddings and the absurdity of superstitions, it also showcases two interesting fictional women. Shashi, played with remarkable restraint by Anushka, is a rebel daringly ahead of her times. Anu, on the other hand, is truly and madly in love but she allows her romantic ardour to squash her doubts and misgivings. Mehreen Pirzada does a great job of bringing out the inner turmoil of a girl who expects the world from the man she loves only to realise that the chasm that separates romance and reality might be unbridgeable.




Diljit Dosanjh and Suraj Sharma, playing two men who are necessarily poles apart, embody the spirit of the divergent times they live in. The 1910s aren't obviously the same as the 2010's - the two actors underscore the differing worlds and mindsets without missing a trick. Dosanjh is slow and steady; Suraj Sharma is twitchy and tense. That is exactly how they are meant to be.

Phillauri is an unconventional Bollywood entertainer that is watchable all the way. It does not rely on star power. It draws its strength instead from an off-kilter screenplay that for once might make you want to believe in the existence of ghosts, especially if they happen to be like the one that Anushka Sharma gets into the spirit of -