Heeramandi: Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Magnum Opus Is Being Criticized ( Photo Credit – Instagram )
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Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Heeramandi has been at the receiving end of all the brutal digs and trolls ever since it dropped on Netflix a week ago. It was one of the most anticipated series of 2024, coming from the man who has repeatedly carved out beautiful frames on screen.
But there was a lot that went wrong with the web series that was set in Lahore in the 1940s in the kothas of Tawaifs, who called themselves Queens of Lahores at that time.
Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Heeramandi majorlylacked a story and an intention to make a better story than a set of beautiful frames.Thus, despite having a stellar cast boasting of Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Aditi Rao Hydari, Sanjeeda Sheikh, Sharmin Segal, and others, the web series fell flat on its face.
Having faced so many brutal attacks, Heeramandi is struggling for the respect that any Bhansali film deserves. Wait, is that a mistake? Well, on researching a lot and hearing the perspectives of the actors and the director, we could figure out two major blunders that stopped Heeramandi from achieving what it should have and could have been.
Heeramandi – The Film
In a recent interview, Bhansali admitted that he envisioned the story as a film, and now it all makes so much sense! Honestly, whoever might have watched the series might have felt a stretched storyline and scattered plots that never made any sense. Despite all the Tawaifs of the Shahi Mahal getting an individual episode of their own, none of their stories had a beginning, an end, or a sense of urgency. The only thing that came out of these episodes were the evil rivalries and the planning – plotting!
Heeramandi – The OG Cast!
The OG cast of this web series was entirely different and boasted of the OG Umrao Jaan as Mallika Jaan! Yes, you read that right! Rekha was supposed to play Mallika Jaan in this web series, and Rani Mukerji was probably supposed to play Bibbo Jaan, with Kareena Kapoor Khan playing Fareedan. Later, he also imagined Fawad Khan and Mahira Khan as the lead couple, Alamzeb and Tajdar, and Pakistani actor Imran Abbas, who also played an important role in the film.
Just imagine what a masterpiece Heeramandi could have been. A 200+ crore extravaganza that might have churned out brilliant numbers at the box office, but blunders just happen with minute miscalculations, we guess!
