Street Dancer 3D

Arch rivals Inayat (Shraddha Kapoor) and Sahej (Varun Dhawan) are the captains of two powerhouse dance teams – Rule Breakers and Street Dancers, respectively. In order to prove their supremacy over one another, both the gangs lock horns in a top-notch dance competition. But, their individual outlook towards life undergoes a drastic change as they tread along.

Adorably pompous by nature, Inayat knows she’s got them both – killer looks and impressive dance moves to ‘kuch alag karne ka’ – and has no qualms about using these innate weapons to rub her age-old foe up the wrong way; the ultimate softie and cut-throat competitor, Sahej. Although they have a respectable fan-base on the streets of London, the duo, not-so-secretly, has always wanted to beat each other in the art-form they are truly passionate about – dancing. What starts off as a harmless tiff between two opponents, takes the form of something bigger than themselves, as the story progresses towards one of the grandest dance challenges in the world. Essentially a dance flick, ‘Street Dancer 3D’ also encapsulates the moral growth of a pack of skilled dancers – both on stage and the bigger theatrics that is life.

The opulent and equally impressive entries of the lead pair – Shraddha Kapoor and Varun Dhawan – has Remo D’Souza’s signature style imprinted all over it. In his third dance-based film, the choreographer-turned-writer/director has upped his game in terms of the presentation of various dance forms – Jazz, Contemporary, Afro, Krump, Locking and Popping, Animation Tutting, Urban and Slow Mo. – and has even aptly managed to rope in some very polished performers from the world over. In fact, with her top knot, big hair, profusion of sass and impeccable dancing, Nora Fatehi as Mia turns out to be quite the revelation and reveals the charm of a glam diva. Other than Shradhha and Varun’s personable representation of desi-at-heart NRIs, the duo has worked relentlessly hard on their postures and overall dance movements, and it shows on screen despite them being surrounded by a surplus of supremely talented professional dancers. Shraddha’s borderline arrogant Inayat complements Varun’s sentimental Sahej. The VFX, too, proves to be an added advantage as Remo has used the power of technology to keep things visually exciting for the audience at all times.

Dancers-turned-actors Dharmesh Yelande, Punit Pathak, Salman Yusuff Khan and Raghav Juyal have played their respective parts competently and Prabhudeva’s act as this silent former performer-restaurateur is a surprise package. His revamped version of ‘Muqabla’ stirs old memories and is a moment to watch out for.

However, what doesn’t favour the narrative is the length; it should have been trimmed down by a good 20 minutes. Yes, dance rightly takes the centre stage in ‘Street Dancer 3D’ but it is almost impossible to overlook the haphazard writing; for one, the film starts with one underlying theme and wraps up with completely another, thus, leaving the viewers perplexed in the first half and disappointed in the second. True, it is a performance-oriented film but if a plethora of songs, dance sequences and battlefield banters are thrown in after every five to seven minutes, then it could get distracting even for a die-hard fan of this genre. Also, this movie caters to the taste of a certain section of the audience – the usual dance lovers, and the ones who love to watch glamorous sets in Bollywood films.

‘Street Dancer 3D’ does have a strong message to send across to its audience – that of love in the face of adversity, compassion towards those we know and those we don’t, and stresses upon the importance of friendship over personal gains – but fails to stitch it together with an organised cinematic fabric. If not for the story, watch it for the love of dance. And, get ready to groove and move!