Rating: 2.5/5

The last time anyone saw Rani’s movie would have written her off and why not? To be acting in a film as shallow as “Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic” is nothing more than joke. What a bloke!

To be so silent after the debacle of TPTM and lying low one would really wonder what this talented actor was upto! I have been seeing the promos of Dil Bole… nothing great really! I mean we have seen enough films based in Punjab, small town girl’s dream, cricket (So many movies!)… Believe me Dil Bole… has nothing much to offer!

Synopsis Yeah! Yeah… a small town girl Veera Kaur (Rani who else, Rakhi???) dreams of making it big in cricket and wants to win the 2011 world cup for India. She is working with her uncle for a local drama troupe. In the meantime, India/ Pakistan match happens – ‘Aman Cup’ - in her town and they lose nine times to Pakistan. Anupam Kher, the person representing India for the Aman Cup calls in his estranged son (Shahid Kapur) back to India to bring victory for India. Shahid settles for the Aman Cup giving up his county matches in England where he is a champion player. Shahid is in search of good players to form his team. Unfortunately women are not allowed to play in men’s team and hence Rani poses as a Sardar and the rest is nothing much to write about. Even worse… as predictable as a sand storm in Kuwait!

What’s so great about this movie I thought! Seriously, nothing much! Really!

But, then it’s a Rani Mukherji film and I just couldn’t wait. It’s been a while since she came on screen and there aren’t many (I mean any!) actresses of her caliber to bear the weight of the film on her shoulders. Even with a dismal plot like this one, here’s an actress who rises above the script delivering a fine performance. Be it a funny scene or a heavy one she does it with complete ease!

Shahid on the other hand amply supports Rani and does nothing much beyond what is expected of him. The other supporting actors are simply wasted. I guess the skin show of Rakhi Sawant and Sherlyn Chopra was only added to bring in the glamour quotient. The lesser said about Anupam Kher, Dalip Tahil and Poonam Dhillon, the better!

Verdict The movie is below average on the technical side. No great shots. No amazing cinematic moments. The climax of the film does not help either which is nothing close to a ‘Lagaan’ or ‘Chak De!’…that still made an edge-of-the-seat viewing. Imagine a situation where India needs to score 215 runs in 20 overs and it rests on only two top batsmen… and imagine India actually winning it against all odds (I am not pessimistic here but hey! lets get practical, okay!)

Barring one or two songs, the music too is below average. The title track sung by mika is quite upbeat and is already a chartbuster.

While watching this film and without even going through the credits, you can easily guess that this is from Yashraj stable! WHY? Coz it has the overtly shown India/ Pakistan sentiments, Punjabi flavour, love and romance, songs, and of course, Rani.

I guess a film like this could have gone low on songs, romance and concentrated more on or around the aspirations of the protagonist to give more credibility to the character and the plot. This is where the film falls flat and hence doesn’t really go to another level.

The film touches on issues related to role of women in sports in a subtle way but nothing more. I wish the director could have researched some more and tried to explore some more and better story to add a different perspective to the film!

Alas, we are still stuck in the same formula films and I wonder when we will get away from it! But then as I mentioned before, this is Rani’s film. Take her out and this film will not even make it to the cans. And only an actor like her can truly keep you glued to the film. Watch it for Rani’s sake… you will know what I am talking about!