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Umrao Jaan Ada, poetess, courtesean of Lucknow tells her tragic story of how she lived. and loved in the times of a bygoneera. Umrao, alias Amiran (Aishwarya Rai) is from a lower middle-class family who issold off by an habitual offender to Khanum Sahib (Shabana Azmi) to adorn her 'kotha'. She learns the art of dance and music and falls in love with Nawab Sultan(Abhishek Bachchan). How their passion unfolds forms the rest of the tale.
Umrao Jaan is a Box office disaster
Biographical films either remain half truths or worse are too self indulgent. To convert them Into an absorbing drama on screen would require more human insight than just paying attention to the look, costumes, sets is not the filmmaker's forte. The Qbsession with jewellery, colours,costumes, props and fabric is so acute that even the screenplay is given a lazy look.
The story telling is so mediocre it could create a riot of yawns. The characters are so ordinary that they must have gone out of style twenty years back. No new insights are provided except with the two central characters. The film, however, is a showcase of Aishwarya the beauty, Aishwarya the actress, Alshwarya the dancer and Aishwarya the clothes house.
Production values are mediocre. Cinematography is excellent. Story and screenplay are ordinary. Dialogues are okay, except for a scene here or there. Editing is leisurely paced. Choreography is top class and deserves all the praise for giving great movements and nuances to Aishwarya. Music is excellent and though the songs have not caught on due to lack of proper promotion it cannot be faulted on composition and melody.
Performancewise it is Aishwarya all the way and the film pays a huge tribute to her ethereal beauty. Abhishek is controlled and restrained. Shabana Azmi is quite good. Suniel Shetty fits the role. Puru Raj Kumar is okay. Divya Dutta and Ayesha Jhulka are reduced to unimportant characters. The rest of the cast is passable.
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