Guns & Gulaabs REVIEW: Rajkummar Rao, Dulquer Salmaan starrer makes you nostalgic about the 90s crime era but has its flaws

Film:
Guns & Gulaabs Review

Platform: Netflix

Episodes: 8

Director: Raj & DK

Star cast: RajKummar Rao, Dulquer Salmaan, Adarsh Gourav, TJ Bhanu, Gulshan Devaiah, Shreya Dhanwanthary, Pooja A Gor and late Satish Kaushik.

Guns and Gulaabs review

After delivering incredible series like The Family Man and Farzi, Raj and DK have come up with another interesting show, Guns and Gulaabs. Given the fact that Raj & DK has created the series, Guns & Gulaabs became the most-anticipated one. The series is touted to be a gangster comedy and sadly, it doesn’t come across that way. The series which is headlined by RajKummar Rao, Dulquer Salmaan, Adarsh Gourav and Gulshan Devaiah is neither thrilling nor interesting.

I enjoy Raj and DK’s content but surprisingly, I didn’t enjoy the Guns & Gulaabs show. The theme and sassy one-liners are too good that might strike a chord with the audience if you’re a fan of the 90s. The retro spin to Guns and Gulabs looks refreshing and amusing. Having said that, the show also makes you a little nostalgic as it brings out all the 80s-90s flavour.

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Story:

Set in Madhya Pradesh, two cities Gulaabgunj and Sherpur are at war over the Opium deal. The gangster of the former city got a huge deal of opium; however, the gangsters of Sherpur are furious as they didn’t get this huge deal. Amidst the war between the two cities, RajKummar Rao, Dulquer Salmaan, Adarsh Gourav and Gulshan Devaiah are pitted against each other. They all are connected to that one deal but how will they succeed it is what the show is all about.

Chhota Ganchi (Adarsh) is a hot-headed man who only wants to prove himself in front of his father. Whereas the family man Arjun (Dulquer) is a filmy Narcotics officer who has different shades. On the other hand, there is 4 cut Atmaram (Gulshan) who uses his blade four times for killing or cleansing a person’s soul. And there’s an innocent Paana Tipu (RajKummar) who is not that innocent. There’s more than the eyes meet.

Rajkummar Rao in Guns and Gulaabs

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Amidst all this façade, there’s school friendship and romance running in the background. Though initially, you will see no connection to the main plot, it has some value to the story. The school scenes are quite engaging and it will surely take you back to your school days.

Highlights of Guns & Gulaabs

The 90s era: From its costume to hairstyle and dialogues, I liked how Raj and DK brought the 90s era back into fashion. In this fast-paced life, we have forgotten the epic era and it was such a refreshing change to see that in this time. The love letters, the old songs and even some elements just reminded us of the magical era and hence, that’s quite amusing.

Raj and DK’s execution: The duo has done a great job in executing the convoluted plot. Though it is quite lengthy, it is a task to fall every puzzle piece into the right place.

Drawbacks of Guns & Gulaabs

Pace of the show: It can be one of the letdowns of the series. It contains 7 episodes and each one of them has a runtime of over 40 mins. Initially, the pace of the series is decent but it gets a little boring in the end as the story doesn’t keep us engaged.

Storyline: The plot of the series gets chaotic and messy after every episode. Chaotic because a lot of things are going on in one story and another sub-plot working in the background. Hence, it gets a little confusing.

Star performance

RajKummar Rao usually delivers a stellar performance in his movies. But his performance somewhere falls short in this one. He delivers a decent performance, yet, I loved seeing him onscreen. He essays the role of Tippu who is lovesick but has a darker side.

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Dulquer Salmaan looks like a sight to behold. The man demands all the attention, all thanks to his swag and retro look. Dulquer plays the role of an officer and he plays his part with great panache.

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Adarsh Gourav is just terrific and just amazed me. This is the first time where I have seen Adarsh in a different character and he did a fab job. He plays the role of Ganchi’s son. He plays games slyly and smartly and Adarsh manages to pull it off nicely. I liked how he actually absorbed the 90s vibes with so much ease.

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TJ Bhanu plays Chandralekha who is the love interest of Tippu. She has a limited screen space but delivers a decent job as well.

Gulshan Devaiah plays the gangster who enjoys killing. However, he didn’t really exude the essence of the 90s gangster. He tried to give a smouldering look but it looks like he is trying too hard to become a gangster.

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Late Satish Kaushik is a delight to watch. After his tragic demise, he just makes me a little nostalgic. He delivers a fantastic performance and I enjoyed him throughout the series.  

Conclusion

Concluding the review, the Gun and Gulaabs series captures the essence of nostalgia but has some flaws. It leads to nothing enticing but leads to boredom. The series brings out all the right 90s flavour which is refreshing and amusing. However, the show is neither thrilling nor interesting.

Watch the Guns and Gulaabs trailer after the review

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