Simran movie review: Kangana Ranaut delivers a flawless performance, proves that she is the 'Queen' of Bollywood

After creating much of the buzz over her personal life, Kangana Ranaut is now catching the headlines for her recent release Simran.

Simran has been mired with a lot of controverises so far, be it the tussle between Hansal Mehta, Kangana Ranaut and Apurva Asrani or lead actress Kangana Ranaut's explosive interview about her alleged relationships that was touted to be a publicity stunt for the movie.

Well, looks like the controversies did manage to bring the audience to the theatres for this Hansal Mehta directorial.

Talking about Simran, the movie revolves around a Gujju housekeeping girl played by Kangana Ranaut who is an ambitious girl settled in US. However, the lady has some 'character-flaws' as she is a kleptomaniac, a gambler, addicted to alcoholism and divorced.

Indeed, such interesting traits, impressive trailer and with Kangana Ranaut in the lead had left the audience with high hopes for Simran.

So, if you are planning to grab a ticket of the movie, here's a quick review of the Kangana Ranaut starrer by leading dailies:

India Today: The good part about Simran is that the narrative is in place early on in the film and whatever comes after it is pretty much via (il)logical progression. Simran touches upon the issue of racism in the US but never quite delves deep into it. Everything else in the film suffers the same fate. The story is dealt with with adequate humour. But it soon veers towards darker territories. Simran starts faltering. It was touted as a thriller. But Simran comes across as neither taut, edge-of-the-seat stuff, nor does it pass off as a light comic caper a la Queen. The performance of the lead actor in Simran is top notch. The film rests on Kangana's shoulders and she doesn't disappoint. She is in form from the word go. But the same cannot be said about the rest of the cast. Everyone else in the film is overshadowed by Kangana, the way director Hansal Mehta might have willed it. Simran is a Kangana film, understood. But it suffers from the lack of a strong supporting cast. Sohum Shah is barely passable as Praful's could-be husband Sameer. He tries hard but cannot hold a frame with Kangana in it.

India TV: The film start on a run-of-the-mill note with a divorced housemaid trying to catch pace with her life which is contained of her job and nagging father. With the very first scene, Kangana Ranaut is looking promising, ready to deliver her another realistic acting performance. The part where the inception of gambling addiction is portrayed is rational and as simply put as it can be. The course in which Kangana Ranaut is drawn towards the murky world is undeniably the most winsome part of the movie, as the rest of the movie sways gradually away from its logical connotations. The first half of Simran amplifies our adrenaline level to some extent, but its’ the second half which brings the entire Hansal Mehta-creation down. Spooling the entire movie back in our minds, we can spot the loop holes. Let’s talk about them one at a time. Looking back at Hansal Mehta’s previous films, sample Aligarh, Citylights and not to forget Shahid, which won him the National Film Award for Best Direction. If you’ve been a witness to the artistry of this popular filmmaker, you will instantly find Simran a lacklustre as a matter-of-fact it is a Hansal Mehta film. The filmmaker has helmed the films which were firmly based around a solid topic which seemed lacking in Simran. This film, was in fact, based on a more lighter note, which wasn’t expected by the audience.

Hindustan Times: With Simran, Hansal Mehta took a detour from his own style of cinema - dark, real tales of mostly marginalised people. Perhaps, he wanted to make a happy, light-hearted film that celebrates an independent-minded woman. However, what we get to see onscreen is a messy mocktail of a star and a well-written, strong character gone wrong in a narrative that fails to keep things from falling apart. Simran, at best, is a celebration of Kangana Ranaut - the star. Looks like someone is trying to further glorify her public image, as her character is the embodiment of everything we have seen in her interviews and public statements over the past few years. She is vulnerable, blunt, brave and honest. Kangana mostly does a fine job of bringing the character to life but at times goes overboard while portraying the antics of Praful.

Pinkvilla: The film rides entirely on the brave shoulders of its leading lady Kangana Ranaut. She is impressive, rendering more meat to her part than the written word calls for. She is goofy, adorable, reckless, aimless and yet utterly charming. The film’s most enjoyable scenes is where she raises a toast to Las Vegas, a city that calls for you to live life on the edge. She gets into the very skin of Praful Patel – a 30-year-old Gujarati housekeeper at a hotel, whose few wrong choices lands her at the mercy of money lenders. To cough up a large sum she gambles at a Vegas casino. To pay off the debt, the only option for Praful is that she must rob banks without thinking about the consequences. Kangana, thankfully, finds a dependable cast to bank on. Starting with the unusual Sohum Shah, it is safe to say that the supporting cast was cleverly chosen. Together, Ranaut and him make for a well-paced, punchy first half. By intermission, you’ll find yourself invested in the story which usually for film critics is a risky zone. Like always, the feeling is a mere prelude to a disappointing second hour. The pace falls, the choppy editing is glaring at our faces and it’s hard to wrap your head around how conveniently the story is finished off. In fact, one of the major problems in the film is that none of the robberies seem believable. They are conveniently done. It is difficult to believe that an amateur robber does a good job of easily scraping through each of them without many hiccups.

Indian Express: In Simran, Kangana Ranaut drives from the front seat, keeping her feet firmly on the accelerator, and everyone else in the cast follows. While that is an entirely wonderful thing because Ranaut is in top form, it also becomes a failing, and ultimately prevents the film from becoming a stand-out. And that’s because there’s altogether too much of Ranaut without adequate support from the plot, which runs off in all directions in order to keep her in every frame (ironically, the leading lady has a script-and-additional-dialogues credit), and it all becomes too much of a good thing. The story of an Atlanta-based, divorced-at-30, searching-for- self Praful Patel gives Ranaut enough to do in the first half, and we are fully absorbed. A highly-entertaining what-happens-in-Vegas-doesn’t-quite-stay-in Vegas episode, leads Ms Patel and the film into slushy territory.