Parineeta

The movie is enchanting, the songs are gorgeously choreographed in picteresque settings. The efforts at initial composition of the 'Piu Bole' song, and the boat swaying to rhythm, are so natural! Loleeta's expressions with her eyes are uncanny and most beautiful. The movie has the feel of an art exhibit. I can't decide whether I like more the sad songs or the happy songs. The actors are most natural. Disc two 'special features' is also spell binding. To see Director Prodeep Sarkar act out the parts for Shekhar and Loleeta is an eye opener. Director Sarkar sees every thing in his mind and then recreates it on film overcoming all obstacles. I loved how the music director Shantanu Moitra and Vidhu Vinod Chopra work on the composition of the 'Piu Bole' song. Director Sarkar's successful efforts in grooming Vidya are noteworthy. A personal note: I visited Calcutta for a month each year from 1955 through 1967, and then lived there till 1970. My father knew he would pick the right girl for me, any girl I might pick would be well beneath my status! The girl I picked wore the simple necklace I gave her every day for the two years before I married her, and every day for the thirty years since I have married her. This movie is a must see, and I own a Two Disc set to see again and again!

I have not enjoyed such a wonderful movie in years. I don't watch very many Hindi movies but decided to watch this one when I watched an interview of Vidhu Vinod Chopra on MTV. The few clips that I saw during the interview convinced me that the movie was one of the best Hindi movies ever made. Everything about the movie is enchanting- the music, the wonderful shots of Calcutta at dusk, at sunrise, in the winter fog, in autumn, the churches, the old houses with their colonial architecture, the warm portrayal of those exquisite times, the delicate filigree of relationships, the simplicity of the childhood bond that describes the relationship between Lolita and Shekhar, the realism of the story. Everything was absolutely marvelous. I have never doubted Saif Khan's great talent and my faith in him was vindicated in the movie. He plays his role with great finesse.The heroine may be debuting in this movie but she will definitely go places. She is talented, she is graceful, she is beautiful without having to thrust her body at the camera to capture the audience's attention. I sat enthralled through the love scenes that reminded me of a watercolor painted with a very fine brush. The music was absolutely wonderful and captured the sound of the 60s. Every song was a treat--not just the music but the picturisation especially "piyuh bole". All through the movie I sat and marveled at the amount of work that had gone into the making of such a film. The research, the reproduction, the faithful details(even the oven that was used to bake a cake!) There are only two aspects of the film that jarred. One was the casting of Sanjay Dutt as Girish. I like Sanjay and he was super in Munna Bhai but he looked too old in his role here. The other thing that somehow spoilt things was the Sanjay Leila Bhansali moment that crept into the movie towards the end. Even so, if the movie were to be compared with(I confess that it is an unfair comparison) Devdas, Pareenita would win hands down. For all the song and dance hoopla of Devdas, the movie failed to tug at one's heart strings. For me the most wonderful thing was the fact that both my children, young teenagers, enjoyed the movie and loved it. Thank you, Pradeep Sarkar and Vidhu Vinod Chopra!

This has got to be the best movie of the year.This was a directors' movie through and through and what a great job he did! Watching this movie also makes you wonder how Devdas would have fared with Pradeep Sarkar at the helm.This guy has an absolute mastery of the medium , thats for sure. The cinematography and WRITING was amazing.It was after very a long time that I heard such beautiful dialogs on screen, brimming with subtext.There was this particular shot of Howrah bride at night which is still etched in my memory.The only OTT/false tone/temporary bhansali insanity occurred at the end..( toddo shekhar todddo!), somehow did not sit well with the tone of the movie. The first song was brilliant in its exposition of the childhood of the major protagonists of the movie.The songs were VERY good and actually fit the tone/mood of the movie. There was a VERY authentic recreation of the 60's, Calcutta has not been captured like this in recent times.The art director of this movie deserves an Oscar ! The 3 major actors were on point, not a false note from anyone.Saif has given his most mature performance yet and damn he looks hot in a sherwani! Vidya Balan is very good for her first movie and more importantly she "fits" her role to a T.Sanju has this kind of role down to a science- his sad eyes and world weary demeanor speak volumes.There were some VERY sensually picturised love scenes! Also the cameos by raima sen , diya mirza and the guy who played ajeet were great! What can i can , i LOVED this movie.

At my viewing of this movie in the Raja cinema in Vancouver at the end of the film the audience laughed heartily several times, times when the filmmaker plainly didn't want anyone to laugh. I was the only "gora" in the audience, which wasn't numerous so I could count, and the laughter was interesting, in part because I agreed with it. Without setting up any spoilers, there were a number of plot points in the climax that made my disbelief come out of suspension as,obviously, did the disbelief of others in the cinema. I'm a fan of Saif Ali Khan and believe him capable of great movies as we saw in Kal Ho Na Ho. But, although he gets to star in this film and show his dramatic chops, that ending sabotaged his efforts.

you say Parineeta , And I say MIND BLOWING..... AWESOME ! Forget BLACK, Forget SWADES, Definitely forget LAGAAN, Even forget MunnaBHAI, etc. These were just the stepping stones to perfection. This is THE BENCHMARK set in Indian cinema. I beg you ppl to watch this movie only in theaters and plz try to find ONE, just ONE, technical mistake. Vidhya Balan is not just HOT, She's Talented... and SCORCHING.... Sanjay Dutt and Saif have given never before power performances. The music is simply AWESOME and the flick will leave you begging for more. I cud never believe that the movie was over in 2+something hours. I was left begging for more... Last Words : DO NOT WATCH IT ON "BAD PRINTS" BTW its a movie worth watching only in theaters. Direction is superb. Vidya Balan: plays Lolita- Strong yet resilient;innocent but blessed with an intuitive wisdom; precious yet endowed with the hallmark dignity of all of Sarat Babu's female characters. The heroine every young girl wants to be. Her faith is unshakable; her determination rock-solid; her love immortal. Saif Ali Khan also surprised me by his serious and mature role. I think he has planned to shed off his "cool dude" getup. Movie will be a mega block buster in this scorching summer. MUST WATCH !!!! ask me its the best Hindi flick ever ! PS: the movie runs in your heart, not in your head !

I have always been a great fan of sharat chanda's literature and seeing it getting transformed to such magnificent movie like vinod chopra's "Parineeta" gives me a sense of pride for our writers and film makers.I saw the movie last evening with my friends and there was none who did not enjoy it. The cinematography is amazing.the sets look far more natural than they were in "Devdas" which was based on the book by the same author. The spirit of the story has been very wisely conserved and the movie displays the efficiency of the director in handling the topic in the very fashion the author would have liked it to be handled. Where "devdas" was a disappointment to me, "Parineeta" has proved the opposite. The movie is far away from the loudness that could have surrounded it. The lights in the sets are dim and add to the romantic mood. thump's up to the makers.

Having watched Parineeta twice in a gap of 4 days since it's release, I have to say, this movie after a long time has done India Cinema proud. The film managed to keep my attention the same as watching it for the first time that says a lot about the film. The cinematography is extremely good, tight and i must say not a frame of film wasted. Each scene is art directed very well and the lighting is perfect. One can clearly see that the research done on this film is very good. The wardrobes of all actors have been well designed including the kind of jewelry the women wore. Great detailing. Just one flaw I have to mention is the choice of sunglasses Saif wears. A little too modern. The male ego and attitude will not come as a surprise to most Indian men but the character and pride of an Indian woman is showcased very well and aptly. I only wish more writers and directors adapt this image of the Indian women instead of taking her into extremes all the time. The music, absolutely outstanding. Shantanu Moitra has done an excellent job with the score and you will definitely want the soundtrack in your collection. It's not easy to make a period film. Kudos to the cast, crew, production and anyone involved in the making of this film. They should all be extremely pleased. A must watch.

I was really impressed with the movie. Although the story is (again) built around a relationship triangle but the twist to the story is quite different from the usual plot line that you see in Hindi movies. Vidya Balan definitely stole the show with her natural and subtle acting (most of the Indian actors/actresses are known for their exaggerated expressions, which are more suitable for theater than for movies), kudos to her. Sanjay Dutt was good as usual and Saif is improving with time. Besides the main lead everybody pitched in with pretty good acting, giving the movie an overall balance. In particular Raima Sen and her friend (don't know her name) were very good. One of the surprises were seeing Rekha (yeah!) as a club singer in one of the songs :), she's still able to pull it off. We need more movies like this, and overall, I would recommend others to watch this movie.

Plot Outline: Orphaned at childhood Lolita (Vidya Balan) stays with her uncle. She and neighbor Shekhar (Saif) develop innocent bonding with each other which unknown to them has matured into love. It takes the arrival of Girish (Sanjay Dutt) before the lead pair discovers their love for each other through circumstantial odds and family pressures. Comment: Parineeta is an adaptation of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's work, whose works include the immortal Devdas that has been remade over and over again in many languages. Although, it is quite usual to compare Vinod Chopra's Parineeta with Bhansali's Devdas, I would say that Parineeta ranks way above latter in terms of being closer to real life and portraying seemingly real characters as against the recent Devdas was more of a visual treat with stars and extravaganza. Although Vinod Chopra, in his screenplay has deviated from the novel's portrayal of the 1920's to the film's 1960's, it is seamless and is believably real. The performances are extremely neat with Saif in a mature role and Vidya Balan exceptional for a débutante, both in looks and ease with the camera. Talent spotter Vinod Chopra has her lined up in Munnabhai-2 and Yagna. Sanjay Dutt seemed older than what the role required. Among the songs that are well timed, 'Piyu Bole' has freshness similar to 1942: A Love Story. Although Pradeep Sarkar's direction has made the movie well paced, the closing scenes have been extra-dramatized. Must watch for all audiences. Rating: 4/5

The FILM:I have recently watched the movie Parineeta. I was highly impressed by the way the movie was setup. The director has been very meticulous in creating the feel of the old era. There was not a single point in the film where one could say that the backdrop of the film was not contiguous. The film was a very great experience. Characters: Vidya Balan was exceptionally good. In fact the ease with which she played the character, makes one wonder if she is a débutante. I must say that she has done justice to the character. Well done Vidhu Vinod Chopra, you have again found a VERY talented young lady. Saif showed that he has matured as an actor and is very versatile in the kind of roles that he has been offered. Saif's acting in this film was awesome. I think Saif can challenge any film critic who questions his abilities to act. He has emerged into a fabulous actor. And with this film he has put himself in line for an award. That goes for Vidya too. RATING: I did not give a 10/10 just because of the climax of the film. It did not have to be so melodramatic.