Most of the love stories end after the couple unite or get married. Ever wondered what happened afterwards? Did they have 'and they lived happily ever after' situation? Or they messed it up so badly that they were better off without each other? Tanu Weds Manu Returns gives a chance to the viewers to understand what happened in the life of Tanu and Manu and no, it's anything but rosy!

The story of the movie: Tanu (Kangana Ranaut) and Manu (R  Madhavan) are married since four years. They are settled in UK and their marriage is on the rocks, thanks to compatibility issues. Both return back to India, but not together and go to their respective homes. In Delhi, Manu one day comes across Datto (Kangana Ranaut), who looks exactly like Tanu. Manu falls for her. In fact both get attracted to each other. But obviously, their love story is not going to be easy.



Tanu Weds Manu Returns has a superb start that sets the mood. The story goes four years ahead in no time and the mental asylum scene brings the house down. The fun continues as the drama shifts from UK to India. Interestingly, all the supporting characters from part 1 have been retained and the new ones gel very well with the narrative. Moreover, Pappi (Deepak Dobriyal) was very good in the first part but he steals the show in the sequel. His scenes take the film to another level. The intermission point is superb as the writer and the maker drop a bomb. The second half is engaging too but the film goes into some other territory for almost 10 minutes. It is entertaining but nothing is done about it. No proper closure is given and it looks abrupt. The 'Ghani Bawri' sequence fails to impress and looks very unconvincing. The film ends on a justified note but more than the finale, it’s the end credits sequence that impresses more!

From the promos it is evident that Kangana Ranaut has given a performance to watch out for. And sure enough, she rocks the show. She plays both the role with élan and one actually forgets that its the same actor playing both the roles! It's great to see that such a fantastic actor is not only getting to play such author backed roles but is also being appreciated whole heartedly by the viewers. Way to go!

R Madhavan underplays his part beautifully and leaves a mark in a very subtle manner. Deepak Dobriyal is outstanding and raises loads and loads of laugh like never before! It’s a treat to see his antics! This is definitely a performance that will be remembered for a long time!



Jimmy Sheirgill (Raja Awasthi) reminds one of his performance in Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster, probably because of the moustache and both character possess similar traits. But nevertheless, he is terrific. Swara Bhaskar (Payal) is very cute. She plays her part so well that one actually feels for her character and the dilemma that she is going through. Eijaz Khan (Jassi) is great. Mohd Zeeshan Ayyub (Chintu) comes up with yet another terrific performance. Rajesh Sharma (Kusum’s brother) doesn’t have much to do initially but then leaves a huge mark in a crucial post-interval scene. Rajendra Gupta (Tanu’s father), Navni Parihar (Tanu’s mother), K K Raina (Manu’s father) and Dipti Misra (Manu’s father) are good in their respective roles. Others do a fine job.

Krsna Solo & Vayu-Tanishk’s music is one of the best of the year. The songs are well placed and don’t serve as a distraction. The best is Banno without a shred of doubt. Move On and Old School Girl are well shot. Same goes for Mat Ja Re. Background score is exhilarating. Chirantan Das’ cinematography is effective. Wasiq Khan’s production design smacks of realism. Himanshu Sharma’s dialogues are terrific and hats off to him for coming up with such creative and never-before-heard lines! His story is too good. Many sequels don’t match up to the first part, forget going beyond it. But thanks to his interesting storyline, the film turns out to be a great entertainer. Also, the storyline is such that all characters of part 1 have been retained which is quite praiseworthy. His screenplay is more or less engaging but at some portions in the second half, it goes a bit haywire which should have been avoided. Aanand L Rai’s direction is upto the mark. Just like his previous 2 films – Tanu Weds Manu and Raanjhanaa – Tanu Weds Manu Returns shows the small town India in the most realistic and appealing manner possible and that adds to the impact. Also, the manner in which he executed the ‘Ja Ja Bewafaa’ sequence is killer. One would not have seen something like this in Bollywood ever. Even the beginning portion is outstanding and kudos to him! However, just like his previous 2 films, he again comes up with an outstanding first half and an okayish second half. The second hour is when the other characters get prominence and suddenly one important track is left ignored after a point. Also, the unconvincing factor comes in which takes away the charm from the film for sometime. The strength of the film is its realism and when that goes away, albeit temporarily, the impact gets somewhat diluted. But overall, a fine job by Aanand L Rai and hope his next film has an equally good second half as the first!

Some of the best scenes:
1. The opening credits (winner!)
2. The drama at the mental asylum
3. Tanu dons just a towel and meets guests
4. Manu’s father tells Manu to ‘adjust’
5. Manu goes to deliver speech in a college (outstanding!)
6. The songs Banno, Move On, Old School Girl & Mat Jaa Re
7. The intermission point
8. Tanu and Raja Awasthi at a rooftop restaurant
9. Kusum’s brother slams the villagers
10. The ‘Jaa Jaa Bewafaa’ sequence
11. Tanu & Datto come face to face
12. The final scene

On the whole, Tanu Weds Manu Returns is a funny, entertaining drama that’ll keep you engaged and also more or less in splits from start to finish. Kangana Ranaut, as expected, delivers yet another award-winning performance. But the real surprise of the film is Deepak Dobriyal – he rocks the show! The first half is terrific but the film gets a bit unconvincing in the second hour and goes into some other zone for a while, that takes away the charm. If only the second hour was as amazing as the first, Tanu Weds Manu Returns would have been a classic. Nevertheless, it deserves a watch for the performances, funny moments and for tackling the idea that the ‘and they lived happily ever after’ status is perhaps hard to achieve in real life.

My rating - *** out of 5!