Theatrical Poster of Highway
Everyone needs an escape. Escape from your daily job, your monotonous love life; sometimes you just JUST need to escape; to find yourself. And this story was about Veera Tripathi’s (Alia Bhatt) escape. Though it was something she never planned but eventually things worked out (they always eventually do) and made her a stronger person in the end (after all that she went through is quite commendable).
The story starts with all the melodrama which happens in any Indian wedding, sarees-jhumkas-and-people! Though I feel that there could have been a better start (DOP department could have done a better job here), but nevertheless, between all the chaos you can still make out that Veera feels trapped; a streak of being uncomfortable is something which you just cannot miss on her face. Did I mention, its her wedding?
Okay, so before her wedding, she goes out with her husband-to-be (though they were not allowed to, and the man here was a F-A-T-T-U) to catch her breath (she is suffocated with all the show-sha-baazi) before she is married off. Story takes turn at the petrol station where she is abducted by Mahabir Bhatti (Randeep Hooda) and gang and she cries out to her man for help, and all he can chant is “maine kaha tha na, maine kaha tha” (this is the moment where you feel like going right into the screen and slap that bastard!). And then, the movie starts!
The drama starts when Veera, a typical nice-well-behaved rich girl and Mahabir, a rowdy, uncivilized guy with criminal records, coming from two different genres of life and society, are tossed together into one topsy-turvy trip to North India! Both having a dark deep secret which had haunted them once brings them closer (Emotions! Emotions!). The story is finely weaved with the right thing at the right place with the right dialogues.
From oh-my-god-he-kidnap-me petrified phase to tum-mujhe-kaafi-cute-lagne-lage-ho phase, the sudden overnight change in Veera’s character is sort of weird (after all, he kidnapped you and was going to sell you to a brothel) but she convinced me (to some extent, but I still have my doubts!). Him, whereas, did a splendid justice to his character and the transition was superbly smooth and well convincing. I liked that part when she puts up an English song and starts dancing to it (it was so innocent) in her ghagra, well no item number or anything, but a plain regular dance; it was funny but hey, we all dance like that!
The movie as the name suggests is all about the highway, people on and off it, majestic landscapes, the being-free notion to it; its all capturing. Its about how she finds freedom in bondage. This movie tells us in disguise that life is simple, you can find your happiness in every small bits and pieces. This movie is a blend of love, frustration, drama, life, misery, disappointment, anger, hatred, happiness, relations and even sheds light upon a sensitive topic like the child abuse (which is a very serious issue and needs to be addressed). This movie is also about coming out of your closet and breathe in.
One of my favorite dialogue from the movie is – “Jahan se tum mujhe laaye ho, main wahan wapas nahi jana chahti, jahan bhi le ja rahe ho, wahan pahuchna nahi chahti, par ye raasta, ye bahut accha hai, main chahti hun ye raasta kabhi khatam na ho”. This is deep.
The landscapes are no doubt breathtaking (I can relate to that pretty much as I lived in Himachal Pradesh for 4 years and mountains can be very addictive, I can assure you that!) which added the depth and the rich texture to the movie along with the spellbound music by A.R. Rahman. My favorite one being (no doubt) – Patakha Guddi (Amazing vocals by Nooran sisters). This song truly celebrates the spirit of freedom. About Alia Bhatt, this lady being a fresher, surely knows how to get her act straight – completely honest with her character, whether be it Veera’s innocence or non stop blabbering or talking about how she was a victim of child abuse. She did a great job! And well, Randeep Hooda *Sigh*, lets just say, I fell in love with him, all over again! *blush*
The Snooze Button 