Shiddat , one of whose meanings is undying dedication, is the latest ode to young and “true” love, the kind that involves extreme measures ...
Shiddat, one of whose meanings is undying dedication, is the latest ode to young and “true” love, the kind that involves extreme measures and the near-erasure of the self. One of its songs is even called Barbadiyaan: annihilation.
The best thing about Mahesh Bhatt alumnus Kunal Deshmukh’s overblown movie is the complete embodiment of this emotional state by its leading man. Sunny Kaushal enters Shiddat as a bratty wedding crasher and exits it on a note of grace, emerging as the film’s throbbing heart.
The screenplay, by Shridhar Raghavan and Dheeraj Kedarnath Rattan, sticks closely to the conventions of this kind of movie – one soul aches more than the other, it usually belongs to the male, and is therefore not only accepted but celebrated.
Hockey player Jaggi (Kaushal) falls for swimmer Kritika (Radhika Madan) at first sight – rather, he picks her as the object of his obsession and expects her to play along. Kritika’s dubious consent to Jaggi’s stalkerish behaviour is treated as a source of sexual frisson. Since Jaggi, when he isn’t mansplaining Kritika, oozes charm, good humour and has smooth dance moves, Kritika tolerates him but holds back on a full-on commitment.
Her reluctance is blamed on her impending wedding in London....
