P Se Pyaar F Se Faraar
Ratings: 2 /5
Duration: 2 hrs 11 mins
Director: Manoj Tiwari
Genre: Drama, Crime, Romance
Release Date: 18.10.2019 (India)
Star Cast: Bhavesh Kumar, Jimmy Sheirgill, Kumud Mishra, Sanjay Mishra, Girish Kulkarni, Zakir Hussain, Akhilendra Mishra, Brijendra Kala, Pankaj Jha, Neha Joshi, Asif Basra, Seema Azmi, Anuja Jha, Shivani Sapori, Ehsan Khan
Plot: Suraj Maali (Bhavesh Kumar) and Janvi Singh (Jyoti Yadav) are high school lovers. They belong to different socio-economic backgrounds and are aware of the problems they would face to live together. So, the young lovers decide to run away secretly to get married. However, things don’t go as planned, and the couple isn’t quite ready prepared to tackle the messed-up situations.
Review: Juvenile lovers Suraj and Janvi, who would be legally able to get hitched within 10 months, take a risky and tricky path for marriage. The duo belongs to different economic strata of society runs away to marry. While Suraj belongs to a lower-class family, Janvi hails from an influential and rich political family.
But, as it is said, “Love is beyond any caste, creed and social status”, the much-in-love couple break-free from the clutches of their conservative families. They decide to embark on a journey of eternal love and togetherness away from their homeland in Mathura. Despite being aware of the consequences, the pair flees the city and in the far more accepting land of New Delhi to kick-start their new journey together.
The social drama begins with the age-old practice of ‘untouchability’. The scene where people from the lower sect enter the kitchens of the upper caste sends chills down our spines and becomes the mirror of the brutal world, we live in. They are looked at as criminals and given brutal punishments such as mob lynching. Merely, 15 minutes into it, you understand that Kumud Mishra’s nasty and lawless character of Omveer Singh is a goon of a politician who is against the biracial and inter-caste marriages. However, on the other end, you meet his soft-spoken, often sensitive and suggestively liberal younger brother Rajveer Singh (Jimmy Sheirgill). With the narrow-mindedness plagued in Mathura and Janvi’s super-conservative family, the couple had no chance to stay together. Despite the reality, then they try and keep their hopes high for a miracle to take place. ‘P Se Pyaar F Se Faraar’ is loosely based on the unfortunate cases of honor killings, and the helpless fate of the rebellious couples.
The movie has a strong narrative that revolves around social issues such as caste discrimination, honor killings, division between haves and have-nots, but it slowly starts loosening up. It introduces new subthemes and parallel characters that add little or no value. For instance, the topic of politics in the Indian sports scenario is very random and doesn’t add to any point. Also, it is disheartening to see renowned veteran actors Sanjay Mishra and Brijendra Kala aren’t given any significant roles.
Another problem with this movie is length – 131 minutes, too long to be digestible with such a simple storyline! Undoubtedly, the music is soothing and justifies the small-town charm of Mathura, but again not something we would want to keep humming. The cat-and-mouse chase is stretched too long. It gets over-ambitious and exhausting to make it a comfortable watch.
The lead pair Bhavesh Kumar and Jyoti Yadav, who are making their debut with this film, deliver honest performances. They successfully manage to capture the naivety, irrationality, and intensity that one expects of two 17-year-old teenagers in love. They’re endearing and will remind of a similar love story form a regional flick on the same lines. Jimmy Sheirgill, as a soft-hearted person supporting the responsibility of changing people’s mindset, is admirable with his consistent effort. Kumud Mishra is so evil that he is too good as the immoral politician, and aptly exhibits the traits of a cruel and oppressive ruler.
Overall, ‘P Se Pyaar F Se Faraar’ is one such movie that places its heart in the right place, but in the race to fit in everywhere, it fails to touch the right string. Based on a topic that makes headlines almost every day, the social drama lacks the courage to fight in the open and put reality in the forefront. Though director Manoj Tiwari has given decent films in the past, this one isn’t just what did justice to the topic. What might not work here is the climax that keeps the audience wondering ‘who is the actual non-conformist?’
