Tanu Weds Manu, which released in 2011, became a sleeper hit and achieved widespread popularity in North India. It also established Kangana Ranaut as a bankable lead actress and gave its director Anand Rai the platform to go on to make bigger films like Raanjhanaa. So it didn’t come across as much of a surprise when they announced the sequel to the original. The promos of Tanu Weds Manu have been liked by a section of the audience and expectations from the sequel are high. Will Anand Rai deliver his hat trick of hits? Will Kangana knock it out of the park once again after last year’s Queen? And most importantly, how will the sequel compare to the original?
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Story: Tanu Weds Manu Returns begins 4 years after the first film ends. Tanu got married to Manu and both are now settled in London. But the marriage isn’t working well as there is discontent in both Tanu and Manu about each other’s characteristics. They decide to shift back to India where Tanu goes back to her wild, carefree, pre-marriage ways and Manu meets a Haryana state level athlete called Kusum (Kangana playing her second character in the film). He decides to marry her and before that sends a divorce notice to Manu. Manu, also has her share of flings with her ex-lover Raja (Jimmy Shergill) and a lawyer (Mohd. Zeeshan Ayyub). There are certain twists which take place and the film reaches its conveniently plotted climax.
Review: The best thing about Anand Rai’s films are that have rooted North Indian settings and Himanshu Sharma’s terrific writing which perfectly captures the milieu of that particular part of India. Here too, both of them have outdone their previous works with the sheer entertainment value! Tanu Weds Manu Returns is brimming with sheer nostalgia, funny dialogues and illogical-yet-interesting twists in the story. The film flows better than most commercial films do and that’s because the trajectory of the story doesn’t impede the flow of events. And what’s even more amazing is that Tanu Weds Manu Returns feels like a better film than the original Tanu Weds Manu. There are certain parts of the screenplay which drag on, particularly in the second half and certain issues were better left untouched in a film which is expected to only be lighthearted devoid of any social issues.
Tanu Weds Manu Returns
The technical aspects of Tanu Weds Manu Returns perfectly suit the type of film Anand Rai wanted to make. The cinematography captures North India in its full glory and the editing is also pretty snappy with no glaring issues. The costume design is good and the production design is realistic and simple.
The music isn’t as good as the first film but it is good nonetheless. The songs take the story forward and establish the characters. Our pick of the songs? Banno Tera Swagger Laage Sexy!
Acting: Let there be no doubt, Tanu Weds Manu Returns is a Kangana Ranaut acting vehicle where she is given ample opportunity to show off her tremendous talent. She is feisty and arrogant as the boisterous Tanu and a diminutive, naive and confident athlete with a Bob cut hair in the form of Kusum. She shows her class with Kusum, where her accent steals the show. R Madhavan doesn’t have a lot to do, unfortunately, and suitably downplays his role as he is required to. Deepak Dobriyal gets to deliver the best lines and delivers them with a straight faced elan! He steals many scenes. Jimmy Shergill, Swara Bhaskar are good in their roles and so is Ejaz Khan. The new additions to the squad Mohd Zeeshan Ayyub and Rajesh Sharma are very well cast.
Conclusion: Tanu Weds Manu Returns is a fitting sequel to a highly liked original film. And in more respects than one, it out does the original without compromising on upping the entertainment quotient. What makes Tanu Weds Manu Returns so good, is the immense entertainment it offers throughout its running time regardless of the minor glitches. All the departments work well in tandem to deliver a deft piece of commercial cinema. If you decide to watch Tanu Weds Manu Returns, you will leave the cinema with a smile.
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Also Read: Tanu Weds Manu Critic Reviews and Score