Saawariya and Om Shanti Om Review-Which is better?

I saw Om Shanti Om and Saawaariya on the Diwali Day. This weekend was probably the hottest for Bollywood fans because it had arguably the best director of India pitted against the biggest star of India.

On the first day, reports started pouring in about both the high profile movies. The Mumbai Mirror carried the movie reviews as front page news! It gave an unflattering two diyas (read stars) to Saawariya and three diyas (read stars, of course!) to Om Shanti Om. As they usually do, reviews paralysed my friend's mind and he backed off from watching Saawariya. As it is, he had taken a beating in his mind watching two dismal movies Jab We Met, and the highly forgettable Ram Gopal Verma Ki Aag.


Left with no choice I went and sat through(I must say) both the movies on the destined day, Friday. Saawariya I must say is a visual treat. It is Sanjay Leela Bhansali's tribute to Baz Luhrmaan's Moulin Rouge. The visuals, the sets and the opulence of Saawariya is USP of the film. The movie is an eye-candy. But that is where it all stops. The movie is just beautiful to look and there is nothing else in it. Like Shahrukh Khan says in Om Shanti Om, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." Oops...just forget to say this is lifted from Rhett Butler's closing line in the 1939 epic Gone With The Wind.

Coming back to Saawariya, the wafer thin story line adapted by White Nights moves at a snail's pace. Salman Khan looks sleepy in the film, probably he was bored with the slow pace that he just 'sleep walked' through the film. Rani Mukherjee has got a dirty habit now-this is the third time she has played the role of a prostitute...The rising and Laga Chunari mein Daag were the other two films where she played the harlot. And you accuse SRK of doing the same kind of roles!

Ranbir has girls by his side and Sonam has the boys-this means that they both have a good future. If you are a stickler for photographic delights, go watch Saawariya with your eyes open. Otherwise just doze off in the theater. The film is not noisy and the songs are lullabies.

Om Shanti Om works to a certain extent. SRK-Farah team's goodwill in the industry can make a lot of stars dance to their tunes literally. SRK's six packs wins over Ranbir's naked butt. The best thing about OSO is the start..when the credits roll in and the Om Shanti Om(among other loopholes)

The first half of OSO looks as if it was done in a hurry. It seems like the movie is racing on to its interval. Post-interval, OSO becomes predictable. However to the movie's credit, the movie has got interesting humor, digs at Bollywood personalities, star power, and good performances by Shahrukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Shreyas Talpade. Kirron Kher is the loudest mother, I have ever come across, she beats my mother hands-on!

This is not one of the best performances of Shahrukh Khan. You get the feeling that Farah Khan was so overwhelmed by SRK, that she okayed some shots without giving more takes.
For instance the scene in which Shahrukh Khan cries over the life sized poster of Deepika Padukone, the scene looks artifical and could have been better executed. Farah Khan gives her best at the choreography department.


The Filmfare award scene is a pure delight. Hats off to Abhishekh Bachchaan and Akshay Kumar for being a wonderful sport! In fact, the popularity of Akshay Kumar is so evident that he gets the maximum seetees and whistles of them all in a special appearance role! Om Shanti Om is going to be the biggest hit of the year but frankly if you are looking at good content in its genre of movies, then go watch Karz, Madhumati or even Kaho Na Pyaar Hain for that matter!

Here is the snap shot review of different aspects of Om Shanti Om and Saawariya:
Saawariya review:

performances: 8/10
Music:6/10
story:2/10
screenplay:3/10
direction:8/10
cinematography: 10/10(wow!)
editing:2/10
choreography:9/10
verdict:4.4/10 (less than average)





OM SHANTI OM review

performances: 8/10
Music:8/10
story:4/10
screenplay:5/10
direction:6/10
cinematography:7/10
editing:5/10
choreograpy:10/10 (fantastic choreography by Farah Khan)


hmmm.....let me average it out now
it is 5.3 !
That means the movie is just about above average!

but it will be a superhit because of mass appeal.