With Raanjhanaa,Sonam Kapoor has come into her own

Raanjhanaa was a departure from her previous films like Aisha and I Hate Luv Stories,and I must admit Sonam stole the show as Zoya. None of her previous performances has had that effect before.

At times actors have a strange impact on us. For instance,one cannot fathom the chord Dhanush touched our hearts with his performance in Raanjhanaa but well,unexpectedly he did. Heaps of praise has been lavished on the actor from the South. But frankly I was quite impressed with his co-star in the film — the pretty Sonam Kapoor. Before that,I had joined countless others in discussing Kapoor’s fashion sense,her accessories,her red carpet entries and a curiosity about what she would be wearing next,but never on her films and performances. Raanjhanaa,however,made me sit up and notice her as an actor. It was a departure from her previous characters in films like Aisha and I Hate Luv Stories,and I must admit Sonam stole the show as Zoya. None of her previous performances evoked more reaction than the one in Raanjhanaa. Kapoor has invested wisely in the film as Zoya,travelling the entire gamut of the young,gawky rustic and the mature with ease,and creating a new cool in the film.

I was particularly struck by the actress’s performance as the couldn’t-care-less class IX schoolgirl in the film. She makes an amazing transformation into a gawky teenager,giving a damn about the pinched face,the shapeless school uniform and plain braids; she absorbs you inside the world of the young and carefree with ease. Another plus was her act as the fiery political activist. Who can forget the way Zoya,a small-town girl from Benares,created a space for herself in the world of politics. The dull,lifeless look on her face after the death of her love,the ‘love act’ with Dhanush and the way she takes revenge on him — all speak volumes about the actress in Kapoor.

I remember her father,Anil Kapoor,during the course of an interview,mischievously declared that his daughter was a fashionista,and even though green-with-envy competitors may not admit to it,they secretly wished they had her fashion sense. But I am sure this new praise lavished on his daughter beats any other.