‘O’Romeo’ Review: Shahid Kapoor-Triptii Dimri’s Violent Romance Has Bite, Not Depth

Walking into the screen, I ask myself if Bollywood needs yet another film on the city’s underworld. Much has been said, written and filmed about it. And yet, here we are, another day, another untold story, that this time around, Vishal Bhardwaj found the merit to weave a blood-soaked yarn around.

A loose retelling of one of the chapters from Hussain Zaidi’s “Mafia Queens of Mumbai” and the alliance between a certain Hussain Ustara and Sapna Didi (aka Ashraf) to bring down Dawood Ibrahim, “O’Romeo” set in 1995, sees Ustara (Shahid Kapoor) fall for a grieving widow, the lovely Afshan Qureshi (Triptii Dimri), who approaches him seeking to hire him to kill four men as revenge for murdering her husband and is summarily laughed off. She persists. And Ustara, shown in the film to be a raging Casanova, asks for the obvious as payment and a desperate-for-revenge Afshan agrees. He agrees to kill those she wants dead, but decides to help only out of pity at first.

However, Ustara is harbouring a secret, one that police officer Khan (Nana Patekar) uses to hold him on a tight leash with. Ustara is a hitman, an artist with the blade, who makes a killing, killing people. But there’s more than meets the eye. He’s also a do-gooder at heart, loves to dance and hang around a local brothel and loves the bottle. His gang, led by Chhotu (Hussain Dalal) and anchored by a cussing granny, Dadi (Farida Jalal, at her swearing best), follow him everywhere. Even if that means that he finds himself smack in the middle of shootouts et al. 

Afshan’s quest for revenge eventually meets the minimum requirement to move his moral compass and set off on a do-or-die-tryin’ mission. 

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Part black comedy, part revenge drama, “O’Romeo” pays ode to a Bombay that once lived and breathed by the day, by the minute, as if every moment had to be measured and lived like it was the last. Where criminals lived large, but mostly on the fringes. Where there were uneasy alliances between traditional foes. And where taking sides meant choosing between life and death. Life was cheap, but loyalty came at an expensive price.

This is Kapoor and Bhardwaj’s third collaboration (following “Kaminey” and “Haider”) and that familiarity bodes well for the film, in general. Here, Ustara is played by Kapoor in a closer vein to his characters in "Kaminey" and his humour-driven moments, interspersed with moments of self-doubt showcase his range. Triptii’s character’s grief is momentary and one finds her more at ease with the romantic side of her character than the one that requires her to go beyond the obvious and actually navigate the depths of her character. Vikrant Massey’s short-lived character doesn’t impress much. Characters written as cameos or special appearances (Aroona Irani, Disha Patani and Tamannaah Bhatia), actually add heft to some scenes. But Tiwary, with far lesser screen time, makes for a predictable, yet menacing villain. 

The moments of dark humour in the film become a buoy in the storm brewing just beyond the horizon, never letting the scenes of exaggerated violence take over the narrative. Yes, they’re pivotal to the plot, but don’t drive it. 

The push for an ‘unrequited love’ story then seems out of place. As does a random flautist in Ustara’s gang. And twins as well, that really don’t add much to the plot. We are kept waiting to meet Ustara and Afshan’s common foe, Jalaal (Tiwari), who operates from the shadows, but calls the shots with a single call. Certain characters have idiosyncrasies but only one, actually gets time to shine.

And much like his lead character, Bhardwaj runs a tight ship in spite of seeming frivolities. One does get caught up in the many intrigues that weigh down this tale and that never really lets it leave port, so as to speak.

The film’s music - original and sync licensed - don’t really hit as hard as you’d expect it to. The dialogues, sometimes, repetitive for effect and sometimes, to commit to memory don’t really stay with you. Dani Del Rasario (action director) does have some stylishly choreographed scenes to show off, but they’re few and far between. 

You want to root for this film because it’s interesting enough to warrant a big-screen outing, but are also bogged down by its claim to do more than it needs to. Sometimes, showing love in all its violence is just enough. No subtext, no elaborate set pieces, no metaphors. Just as is. Guess we’ll have to wait for that.