Starring : Salman Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Harshaali Malhotra , Sharat Saxena, Om Puri
Producer : Salman Khan Films & Rockline Venkatesh

Director: Kabir Khan , Music : Pritam Chakraborty

Review by : Kriti Agarwal
Rating : 4 out of 5

What's about : The film touches several social issues like ,religious barriers, patriotism (on both sides of the border), human trafficking , & corruption. BB is packed with romance, laughter, action and drama. Being human is more important than being a citizen of a country.

BB portrays both nationalities with polite and genuine justice, gently defuses religion and geography sensitive bombs and makes the audience comfortable with discussion of otherwise regularly volatile topics like the hesitation to visit the others religious sites or mouth religious salutations.

There is a clear attempt to indicate that it is ok for both the religious communities not to ostracize the other’s approach to their religion or its practices.

Main purpose of BB is for you to surrender disbelief (and distaste, carried over from real-life court-cases and flim-flam judgements), and enjoy the familiar antics of a clearly-ageing Salman, played off against the freshness of a heart-stealing cuttie girl .

The Indians and Pakistanis may not run into each other’s arms , but guaranteed to look at each other with a more accepting lens.

Location :Chandni Chowk , Purani Dilli ,  the heartland of Punjab, the deserts of Jhunjhunu , Mandwa castle Rajasthan, snow-capped mountains of Kashmir , Atari railway station- the last stop on the Amritsar-Lahore route, close to the Indo-Pak border, ND Studio Karjat  & Salman's  own Panvel farm house.

Story :  Salman Khan folds his hands with great sincerity in a namaste pose and says, “Jai Shree Ram”   .
The 50-year-old actor is playing a schoolboy who continues to fail his 10th class.
The cute and mute girl,Munni (Harshaali Malhotra), happens to be a Pakistani Shahida. (Cricketer Shahid Afridi has something to do with her name.) Shahida has a tendency to fall off cliffs, get miraculously saved by trees or jump off trains to save little lambs and land up on Indian soil. She needs a miracle to help her back to her sobbing mother, who is somewhere in Sultanpur.

Our Bajrangi, being Hanuman bhakt believes in miracles. He wins over Rasika (Kareena, delightful with her kohl laden eyes), by calling her a “behenji”. He expresses shock over little Munni gorging chicken legs. Why? Because he was happy assuming that she is a Brahmin going by her fair skin. The biggest shock to the Hanuman bhakt is when Munni runs into mosques to pray.

Behenji girlfriend rightly lectures him about not judging little children by their faiths. Toss in a couple of songs and Kapoor's role is over. It is now time for Bajrangi to become Bhaijaan.

So begins a walk across the border, over snow-clad peaks. Nawazuddin Siddiqui calls the burkha-clad Bajrangi his “begum”.

The whistle-and-clap moment comes when he finally changes from this greeting to a salaam. You won’t miss much in the first half . You wouldn’t want to go in the second half

Characters :  excellent Performances .

Salman Khan [ Pavan Kumar Chaturvedi ]: a polished, luminous performance .The muscular but baby faced Salman looks a dove of peace, speaking for all religions & ‘mulqs’. Believe it, or faint.

Kareena Kapoor [ Rasika ]: glossy , secular love interest with not enough screen time.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui [ Pakistani Reporter ] : his pauses, hamming and high pitched dialogues... everything adds value . he very charmingly informs the audience about the absurdities of our daily lives. hungry for 'Bariking News' [breaking news:) ]

Harshaali Malhotra [ Munni ] : This six year old is cuteness overload . The cute mute girl steals the show , emotes through her “truck headlight” eyes. makes you laugh and cry, without saying a single word.
    supporting cast :
    Om Puri [ Maulana at a Mosque in Pakistan ] , Sharat Saxena  [ Kareena’s dad/wrestler], Adnan Sami (special appearance), Deepti Naval , Najeem Khan , Ali Quli Mirza -- all gave  memorable performances .

Pros :Emotion, drama, humour-in short, the Salman Khan package of entertainment. the sweet kid , impactful dialogues/one liners,  par excellent cinematography. 

Cons :  2 hours and 35 minutes, BB is long. Its stretched climax !
Music : visuals are astounding. Medley of tracks ranging from peppy to soulful numbers to qawwalis. Zindagi Kuch Toh Bata is good.  'Bhar do jholi meri' by Adnan Sami was picturised at the famous Ashmuqam Dargah near Pahalgam in Kashmir. Salman Khan sings ''Aaj party meri taraf se '' .

Reasons to watch BB :
1 -- not  a  single ‘Yawn’ moment.
2 -- no showing off or going overboard. The drama is enthralling and will emotionally overwhelm you.
3 -- You will love the upright & noble character of ‘Bajrangi’. It might change the Pakistani civilian’s mindset, if not the military.
4 -- nicely flavored with effective comedy and thrill. It has a shared, simple but impactful message for people from all religions & across borders.
5 -- Pakistani's find it encouragingly positive and the Indians are stolen by this emotionally pleasing thunder.

Highlights : Some scenes hold attention :

1-- the Samjhauta express train stops in the dead of the night monitored by horse bound soldiers
2 --the top view of the Wagah Border railway gates
3 --people flocking the Kurukshetra station
4 -- the lush beauty oft he mountains
5 -- While struggling to find Munni's religion, Pawan declares: "Ye Brahmin hogi, dekhti nahi kitni gori hai."
when he finds Munni eating chicken, he mutters, "Kshatriya hogi, wo maas khate hain aur gore bhi hote hain."
6 -- Wagah-Attari scene , with Aaj rang dini playing in the background.
7 -- a canny Om Puri reminding how there’s a little bit of Kashmir on the other side too.

Portrayed Pakistani views:
1 -- It is easier to get an American Visa than an Indian Visa.
2 --Stories on hatred towards India are more sought after by TV channels than news on affection & compassion.

Bottom line : BB is a pure South Asian jalebi, rounded, warm, simple and sweet.

Just remember to take that box of tissues with you. It emphasizes that , amidst visas and wars, there are also homes, families & children .  Jay Shri Ram . BB is  our Eiddi for this year's Eid , so not to be missed.