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Critic's Rating: 3.0
Tamasha captures Deepika-Ranbir's loving-'n'-longing

Story: Ved (Ranbir) and Tara (Deepika) meet each other with fake identities and take a week-long vacation in Corsica. Back in India though, it’s a different story.

Review: If you watch Imtiaz Ali’s new film assuming that Deepika-Ranbir have unfinished business, you will forgive Tamasha its indulgence. The writer-director obviously knew he was dangling a carrot in front of these two Bollywood exes whose unrequited love has been gossip-column fodder for years now. And, they probably decided (this is an assumption) that if they hook up on screen once again, perhaps they could reach a closure.

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The philosophy of the film is simple. If you conform in life, you will exist. However, if you indulge, even from time to time, you can actually live.

Armed with this life lesson, cute kid Ved from Shimla, who hates math and loves spinning yarns, keeps taking off on flights of fantasy. His first grown up adventure is an incognito trip to Corsica. He bumps into Tara, a beautiful Indian girl, on that breathtaking island and both of them promise they will not ask each other any questions, will not have sex and will go their separate ways, once this vacation ends. But of course, Cupid has other plans.

Back in India, Tara pines for Ved. Four years after that chance meeting, she is still drawn to that enigmatic ‘free bird’ who she met on an island.

He, on the other hand, hasn’t even had time to let his real feelings surface. His humdrum existence, as a project manager in a high-tech Delhi firm, has him feeling stifled in a tie and pitching bids he doesn’t believe in.

The clandestine lovers from France rekindle their affair in India. But when Ved proposes, Tara retorts that she loved the free-spirited man she met on vacation, not this mechanised robot. From there on the film meanders.

Like the protagonists, all of us know what it is to be tied down and not do what our hearts long. But the route Tamasha takes is long-winded and plain boring at times.

Deepika and Ranbir convey their angst and passion so convincingly that you’re hooked. Except for the curiosity about them, the rest of the drama is 'oh,never-mind'. Matargashti and Heer toh badi sad hai, two of Rahman’s songs, are magical even as standalone numbers.

In-depth Analysis

Our overall critic’s rating is not an average of the sub scores below.

Direction:
2.5/5
Dialogues:
3.0/5
Screenplay:
2.5/5
Music:
4.0/5
Visual appeal:
4.0/5
Summary / Analysis

Spoiler alert! Please do not read the following plot summary if you have not seen the film.
Plot Summary

Tamasha tells the story of Ved Vardhan Sahni (Ranbir) who loses his self by living according to the social conventions expected of him. He is enchanted by stories, having grown up hearing them and expresses himself by performing them. Ved is a free spirited person who wants everybody around him to be happy. He is a nomad, going out of his way to please people. The story traces his life in three stages – as a nine-year-old child, a 19-year-old adolescent and a 30-year-old repatriate adult. Ved reportedly bears loose resemblance to that of Edward Bloom in the 2003 American fantasy flick, Big Fish.

Tara Maheshwari (Deepika) is a quick, eloquent and emotionally agile girl who with a gentle gait. Tara is also shown to be a fan of the French comic series Asterix, which takes place in Corsica, French. It’s on this adventure that she meets Ved. They both explore the island and, along the way, they form a troupe to stage dramatic plays and fall passionately in love. However, on returning back to work after this trip, Ved becomes his normal self again, far different from the guy Tara met.

Tamasha narrates the journey of Ved who has lost his edge in trying to behave according to socially acceptable norms of society. The story is based on the central theme of abrasion and loss of self resulting from a constant attempt to fit in oneself back.

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Trivia & Goofs

TRIVIA

1. Tamasha is the third film Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone are doing together, and also the third time director Imtiaz Ali and composer A R Rahman are collaborating. Moreover, it is also the first time Imtiaz is repeating his actors, after working with them once before.

2. When it was announced first, the film was called Window Seat. In an interview, the director has been quoted saying, “Ved (Ranbir’s character) is closest to how I am.”

3. Since Deepika Padukone’s family in the film is shown to own tea estates, some officials from a tea auctioneering company were chosen, not auditioned, to play their parts.

4. The film pays homage to veteran actor filmmaker Dev Anand when Ranbir Kapoor imitates the late legend. Reportedly, the director Imtiaz Ali wanted it because when Ved and Tara meet in a place and decide to not disclose their identities, he becomes Don and she becomes Mona darling. RK took a lot of classes from mimic artists to mimic those dialogues.

5. Since the character of Ved’s father originates from Lahore, Javed Sheikh was cast as the director felt there is a certain air about him that only the actor could pull off.

6. The first schedule began last July in Corsica, France, from where some pictures and video footage of the song Matargashti – then called Dil Ka Bayaan – got leaked.

7. CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) gave the film U/A rating after five cuts. One of the cuts is the kissing scene between Ranbir and Deepika which has been cut short.

8. Following Censor Board’s diktat, RK’s lines like ‘Apna haath Jagannath’ and ‘Din mein sister, raat mein bistar’ have been removed.

9. When travelling to Delhi to promote the film recently, Ranbir changed travel plans when he heard that Deepika had expressed a wish to travel by train. At his behest, the movie’s team made reservations on an overnight train to the capital.

10. The film was titled 'Window Seat' at the time of its launching.

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FAQs
  1. What is the release date of 'Tamasha'?
    Release date of Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone starrer 'Tamasha' is 2015-11-27.
  2. Who are the actors in 'Tamasha'?
    'Tamasha' star cast includes Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Javed Sheikh and Piyush Mishra.
  3. Who is the director of 'Tamasha'?
    'Tamasha' is directed by Imtiaz Ali.
  4. Who is the producer of 'Tamasha'?
    'Tamasha' is produced by Sajid Nadiadwala.
  5. What is Genre of 'Tamasha'?
    'Tamasha' belongs to 'Drama, Romance' genre.
  6. In Which Languages is 'Tamasha' releasing?
    'Tamasha' is releasing in Hindi.