Asim Khan

STORY: A complex love story set during India’s Partition era, where the young Roop (Alia Bhatt) is torn between respect for husband Dev (Aditya Roy Kapur) and her newfound love for Zafar (Varun Dhawan). While their back stories and heart-breaking love saga unfolds, the history of India takes an epic turn, from where there is no coming back REVIEW: As the name suggests, 'Kalank' is a story that questions the high morals of society, especially when it comes to love and family ties. At the heart of the story, the film focuses on how eternal love goes beyond the norms and rules of society, the trappings of religion, and all other physical and man-made boundaries. At a dramatic moment in the film, Aditya Roy Kapur's Dev remarks that if someone’s wife is in love with another man, then what is the point of the marriage at all. In that aspect, writer and director Abhishek Varman's film makes a strong point. The story is based in a town called Husnabad, near Lahore, a few years before the Partition of India and Pakistan. It's a town populated by blacksmiths and a majority of them are Muslims. Husnabad's most affluent family is the Chaudhrys - Dev and his father Balraj (Sanjay Dutt), who also run a liberal newspaper called The Daily News. Dev’s life takes a sudden turn when under strange circumstances he gets married to Roop. But the complexities in the story are just about to begin. Without revealing too much, during a visit to Bahaar Begum's chamber (where Roop is honing her music skills) Roop meets Zafar, the local blacksmith and after several meetings they develop strong feelings for each other. The story seems like it offers something new, but the complex relationships and ill-fated romances are often predictable. What’s fresh about 'Kalank' is the treatment. This period drama is mounted on a lavish scale and whether it's the sets or the costumes, everything about the film brings the grandeur alive.