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The film strongly portrays common women of the era, who were part of the rebellion.

Manikarnika' Movie Review: Kangana Ranaut's stellar performance is filled with blood, fire and tears

Directed By: Kangana Ranaut, Krish
Produced By: Zee Studios, Kamal Jain, Nishant Pitti
Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Ankita Lokhande, Jisshu Sengupta, Atul Kulkarni, Danny Denzongpa
Bollywood Bubble Rating: 3.5/5

With blood, fire and tears, Kangana Ranaut infuses life into her portrayal of Manikarnika' and makes us remember once again that the freedom that we take for granted is thanks to the sacrifices made by brave souls. In one soul stirring sequence at the end, we see Rani Laxmibai (Kangana) fighting in slow motion despite being badly injured. When the frame stops to allow you to soak in her bravery, your heart stops too and in those few seconds, you'll feel as if you have got your money's worth.

The story starts with Manikarnika (brought up in Bithoor) getting married to the King of Jhansi Raja Gangadhar (Jisshu Sengupta). Gangadhar's brother Sadashiv Rao (Mohammad Zeeshan Ayyub) wants to become the king and his hopes get dashed when he finds out that Rani Laxmibai has had a son. He poisons the king and the newborn, and their death sparks of a rebellion in Jhansi. To find out what happens next, you'll have to watch the movie.

In many ways, this is as feminist a film as it can get. Kangana is intimidating even when she is confronting a man, and a landmark scene sees her refuse to get her hair chopped off like all widows. Nowhere do we see a man coming in and bailing her out of trouble and there are many instances where she is shown as the undisputed leader of men.

As far as performances are concerned, Kangana gets all the great dialogues (I wish I had written them down, as my memory fails me at the moment) and other than her, none of the characters have much to do. The music and the background score of the movie do succeed in making your heart swell, and in rare instances, give you goosebumps. The action sequences could have been cut short, and I don't know why they used slow motion only towards the very end.

Final verdict:

Definitely a great family entertainer that doesn't feel like a history lesson.

https://www.bollywoodbubble.com/movie-reviews/manikarnika-movie-review/

Rating: 2 stars

The queen of Jhansi is undoubtedly an extraordinary woman. And within minutes of the opening scene of Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi, we are introduced to her entrancing personality. As a young lady, she's seen striking down a tiger with a single arrow. BUT the injured animal continues to charge towards her, only to screech to a halt by a foot. The special effects are on point, but whether it actually played out in history is something that we will NEVER know.

Taking such massive cinematic liberties is possibly what ruins what could've been an authentic take on our first warrior princess. But alas, Bollywood is far more invested in turning every lead actor into a superhero. There's no space for vulnerabilities or insecurities. It's always about how charged and self-righteous they are. Rani Lakshmibai is no different.

There's this constant urge to showcase her as a superwoman, who can, apart from doing wonders with swords, FLY on top of elephants and do quick somersaults. Lakshmibai is even seen building a women's army, bang in the middle of a rebellion, egging them to pick up the sword and chant the war cry, even when the history books are in the dark about it.

There's never a real sense of responsibility to represent history without adulterating it with a twisted sense of bravado, thus making it difficult for us to buy into this fantasy. However, with two names credited for directing - Kangana Ranaut and Krish you are unsure, whom to blame for blatantly distorting facts.

At one point, almost appeasing to a certain political ideology, Lakshmibai barges into a tiny British party, uninvited obviously, to showcase her English skills (well, research does show she schooled in English) to reprimand them for stealing cattle to cook a good steak. "These animals are not to be killed. And from now on, I forbid you from stealing them, she announces, valiantly.

It's also a movie about contradictions. While Lakshmibai refuses to bow down to the gaze of a British soldier, she's angered at one man for refusing to bow down to her. Her king wears bangles to remind him of his ineptness to fight the colonial powers but is willing to put his wife on the throne because he thinks she's worthy of it.

There's also not enough about Nana Saheb Peshwe and Tatya Tope's journey, even though they played a crucial part in her uprising.
Kangana paints an arresting image of the queen and tackles the battlefield with finesse, and carries much of the movie on her able shoulders. The moment when she breaks down at a personal loss is intensely captured. Jisshu Sengupta wears the King's crown with aplomb. Barring a romantic ballad and a pearl necklace, there's no real sense of his relationship with his wife.
There are also a handful of actors who've supported the main lady competently, with Ankita Lokhande packing in some genuine moments. Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub who's often left to play the hero's loyal sidekick, gets a one-sided, misplaced role as a snitch in this one, while Danny Denzongpa appears to have borrowed Amitabh Bachchan's costumes from Thugs of Hindustan. Among the British actors, Richard Keep manages to hold his own.

Despite wanting to know so much about Lakshmibai, the movie prefers to celebrate her unabashedly without ever throwing an insight into who she really was. So we are left googling for more information!

https://www.masala.com/manikarnika-the-queen-of-jhansi-movie-review-kangana-ranaut-is-great-but-cant-save-a-flawed-film

The year was 1857 and the valour with which Indians fought for independence got further furious with the Sepoy Mutiny. Not just the queen of the princely state of Jhansi, Rani Laxmibai, over the course of history, also became a glorious figure of resistance and bravery in face of the British aggression as her courage, which was very infectious, spread upon other princely states, setting one dream for all. Independence. Does Kangana Ranaut's directorial debut do justice to the spirit that is immortalised in history? Not until Kangana herself gets down to action.

Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi begins with Manikarnika, a child who was rescued during the war, being brought up by the Peshwa of Bithur. Exchanging the wedding vows with Jhansi's king Gangadhar Rao, she turns Rani Laxmibai, the queen with unmatched beauty, courage and sharpness. Her happiness, however, is tarnished as she soon loses both her husband and her son. This is where Laxmibai's true war begins.

The first half, which builds the foundation of the rest, is rather average, barring the performances. While Kangana establishes herself as the protagonist with ease, she probably needs some more time before her storytelling becomes more subtle yet more effective. Manikarnika's transition to Laxmibai happens rather comfortably and Rani Laxmibai becoming her warrior self after two major personal losses doesn't stir us.

It gears up during the second half as we see the queen in her real glory. In and as Manikarnika, none could have slayed it better than Kangana did. In perfectly choreographed war sequence, she with all her power and passion is a delight to watch. Furthermore, we like the older, braver Kangana so much more! This is also when a piece of history truly comes alive, with the reel Jhansi resisting the demons with all its strength. Ankita Lokhande as Jhalkari Bai has made her presence felt, on and off the ground. Jisshu Sengupta, as Gangadhar Rao, leaves the imprint of a weak but wishful king; and quite powerfully so, albeit he's there for a brief period. Md. Jishan Ayubb, as the unfaithful Sadashiv Rao, eyeing upon the throne of Jhansi, deserves a special mention.

Both Kangana and Krrish, however, have to be credited for maintaining a thorough timeline of events, leaning very little space for abrupt jumps. Hence, the screenplay mostly works fine. In this neatly shot film, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy's effective compositions have enhanced the impact of the sequences to many times.

With slices of imperfection here and there, Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi definitely deserves a watch from you.

https://www.in.com/entertainment/bollywood/manikarnika-the-queen-of-jhansi-review-kangana-ranaut-dazzles-in-and-as-manikarnika-295869.htm