A murder mystery wrapped in a messy romance

Rating – 3.5/5

 Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Vikrant Massey, Harshvardhan Rane

Director: Vinil Mathew

A murder mystery wrapped in romance and lust with a dollop of humor; Haseen Dillruba might be one of the best Hindi movies released this year. After Hasee Toh Phasee, a romantic comedy, director Vinil Mathew is back after seven years with a crime thriller that will blow our minds. Just like his first film, Haseen Dillruba is about crazy love, but it exceeds the level of craziness this time. There’s lust and murder to make this romance a hot mess.

Taapsee Pannu, who had set the standards high with her last year’s critically acclaimed film  Thappad shines as Rani Kashyap, a middle-class self-obsessed 28-year-old. Rani claims herself to be the complete package – beautiful, homely, and hot! After a few failed attempts at love, she settles for an arranged marriage with Rishabh Saxena, played by Vikrant Massey. Ok, speaking of Vikrant Massey, words won’t suffice to elaborate the immense talent that this new heartthrob of Hindi cinema possesses. Vikrant excels as Rishabh, affectionately called Rishu. Rishu is a normal guy with a normal engineering job.

The innocence, the madness, the craziness, Vikrant swifts between these effortlessly. We feel sorry for him when Rani expresses her regret about marrying a ‘commoner’ like him. In a scene where Rishu breaks down and cries ‘Ordinary men like me go unnoticed every time!’, we feel the depth of his tears. It is Vikrant who has more scope for performance than Taapsee, to be honest.

Vikrant Massey amuses us every time he comes with a new movie. In every movie, he sets the bar so high that only he can break. His journey as an actor has been so inspiring so far. From television soaps to side roles to carrying the film all by himself, the man has come a long way.

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The first half of the film where Rani and Rishu struggle to adjust to their new marital life is hilarious. Rani and Rishu’s mother make up for most of the funny elements.

Harshvardhan Rane, who gained popular attention with his movie Sanam Teri Kasam delivers a satisfying performance as the attractive third wheel. He plays Neel Thripathy, Rishu’s cousin who is a river rafting expert. Though limited screen time, Harshvardhan grabs our eyeballs with his performance and physique.

Haseen Dillruba does not bore for even a minute. The film is shot in such a way that we are left curious to know what might have happened. There were, however, moments where I felt that the story was moving too fast and in an ordered fashion, like pieces being delivered in a conveyor belt. But the good bits overtake the bad so everything is balanced out.

The climax is bewildering and we can’t take our eyes off the screen for a single second. I would love to be more elaborate here but do not want to give away major spoilers.

Now looking from a realistic and politically correct angle, Haseen Dillruba does not really endorse and justify toxic love as several allegations claim. The film focuses on the sadistic approach of the characters and nothing else.

Image Courtesy: YouTube