Ramleela is a novel take of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, portraying instinctive passion and obsession of a boy and a girl belonging to warring tribes of Gujarat – the Sanedas and the Rajadis. In a land somewhere near the border, in an imaginative town in Gujarat, guns speak more than words, are the roots of the two feuding families.
Ram, the local village Romeo, is a colorful, charming yet dramatic vagabond whereas Leela is an unbridled and passionate village Juliet. The only thing in common between these two strangers is their families’ hatred for each other.
The two communities have been sworn enemies since the past 500 years and their own kin falling in love with each other is worse than any storm that could have ever co…me. When Ram and Leela see each other for the first time, their worlds collide, wars are fought and destinies are written in blood, forever.
Ram (Ranveer Singh) and Leela (Deepika Padukone) meet – they come face to face for the first time during the festival of Holi, and instantly, they fall in love. Born in a violent family, Ram loves peace and is a charming youth who detests the The lovebirds hate this violence, the gun-fights and the daily fights of their castes and they escape away to get married.
Set in a land of guns, vengeance against a magnificent musical backdrop, Ram and Leela fight the world to live their own dreams. What will happen when they declare their love to the world? Will their families relent or will Ram and Leela carve their own destiny?
Sanjay Leela Bansali has composed music for the songs in the film which has quite a few soft romantic songs. Among the songs, Ang Laga De, Tattad Tattad and Ram Chahe Leela which has Priyanka Chopra in a dance number have a good recall value and should climb the charts.
Ram Leela, the film displays earthen sensuality between Ranvir and Deepika, yet it doesn’t appear cheap and vulgar. It makes it compelling for the viewer to watch the lead pair’s love-hate relationship. It displays electrifying chemistry between them.
GOLIYON KI RAASLEELA – RAM-LEELA is the real title of the film as shown in its censor certificate and at the beginning. It has to be watched for its sparkling dances, entertaining musical score, the violent streaks in the narrative and the raw passion of the lead characters – Ranvir and Deepika.
Ranveer Singh is perfect as Ram. Born into a violent family with warring opponents, he has the charm to perfectly portray the lover boy. Deepika Padukone has come up with a feisty and breathtaking performance.
Another impressive character is that played by Supriya Pathak as the strong woman Dhankor Ba, who looks menacing, and matching her is with brutality and that works well for the film. Complementing her brilliance is Richa Chadha as Rasily, and rest of them play their parts well.
The cinematography is brilliant, it has colourful sets, glittering opulence and glittering costumes. It will impress a vast percentage of the audience with Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s superb storytelling skills of this creative and highly talented craftsman.
Cast:
Ranveer Singh as Ram
Deepika Padukone as Leela
Richa Chadda as Rasila, Leela’s sister-in-law
Supriya Pathak as Dhankor Baa, Leela’s mother
Homi Wadia as Radhu
Sharad Kelkar as Kanji, Leela’s brother
Gulshan Devaiah as Bhavani, Leela’s cousin
Abhimanyu Singh as Meghji, Ram’s brother
Barkha Bisht as Kesar, Ram’s sister-in-law
Raza Murad as Sarpanch
Jamiel Khan as Vanka
Anshul Trivedi as Mandar
Priyanka Chopra – special appearance in the song “Ram Chahe Leela”
Credits & Crew:
Studio SLB Films, Eros International
Produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Chetan Deolekar, Kishore Lulla, Sandeep Singh
Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Screenplay by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Siddharth-Garima, Rutvik Oza
Based on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet
Music by Monty Sharma, Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Cinematography Ravi Varman
Editing by Rajesh G. Pandey