Shiddat is a dramatic romantic movie that is filled with the aspect that love and obsession are a thin line. This Bollywood movie directed by Kunal Deshmukh was released in 2021 and features Sunny Kaushal, Radhika Madan, Mohit Raina and Diana Penty in the star cast. It narrates the tale of Jaggi, a boy who lives recklessly and without a proper plan in life but his love life takes a climactic twist when he falls in love with Kartika. A young infatuation gradually develops into an overwhelming power of love and insanity. The movie explores the depth of feelings, and the power of love as something that is beautiful and devastating when it breaks every border.
Jaggi (Sunny Kaushal) is an adventure seeking boy who likes living a life full of adventure and excitement. They meet one day during a sports event and her beauty entirely falls on his eyes. She is elegant, smart, and vital but there is a snag. Kartika already has somebody she is married to and is soon to be married. But Jaggi through an insatiable passion chooses to listen to his heart regardless.
When they reunite, Jaggi tells Kartika that he loves her and she rejects him claiming that it is too late. But he accepts her words as a challenge that he must prove his love to her. The next thing is an emotional ride through the countries as Jaggi puts everything including his life to find her before she gets married.
Meanwhile, the tale of a married couple (Gautam, Mohit Raina, and Ira, Diana Penty) employed in the immigration department is parallel to the tale of Jaggi. Their love is mature, unlike the impulsive love that Jaggi has that presents two aspects of love, one of which is steady and the other which is volatile. Eventually, the life of Jaggi takes a tragic ending and serves as a lesson that love is a strong thing and it may overtake you easily in case you mismanage it.
Jaggi played by Sunny Kaushal is full of raw energy and emotion. He perfectly emulates the insanity and naivety of a person who is convinced that love is able to overcome everything. His acting is convincing and spontaneous that makes him sympathetic even when his decisions appear to be wild. The character of Jaggi explains how passion may confuse love and obsession.
Kartika by Radhika Madan is peaceful and serene-- the converse of Jaggi. She is a depiction of the moral dilemma of a woman between duty and passion. The romance between her and Sunny is quite plausible, so much so in the emotional aspects where she wonders whether love is worth ruining all that.
Mohit Raina and Diana Penty add a touch to the story. The characters they play, Gautam and Ira, are mature love, firm yet decaying after routine. They provide emotional attachments to the careless love affair of Jaggi. The two couples are contrasting therefore making the film more layered which reveals that love has many forms with regard to time and maturity.
Shiddat is a beautiful film to watch. The movie shifts between the lively Indian scenes to the frozen European ones, which creates a contrast to the mood of Jaggi. The camera work is a masterpiece that brings together the heartwarming and the coldness of a broken romance. Each frame has been planned to be emotional, close-up shots of a longing eyes, the wide shots of lonely roads.
Shiddat has a strong suit in the music. The songs, such as Shiddat Title Track, Barbaadiyan and others are the most accurate statements of the mood in the film: passionate, painful, and poetic. The background melody adds value to each scene, particularly when Jaggi is in a desperate run and when he is crying. The film is vibrant due to the music despite the silent moments of the movie.
Shiddat is not a mere love story, but it is a storm of emotion. It glorifies passion but it cautions that one should not lose oneself in them. Several dramas centered on intensity, tragedy and heartfeltness, it clings to you even after you finish watching the credits.
