It’s young, it’s restless, it’s inspiring, it’s funny, it’s hip, it’s colourful, it’s realistic, it’s dramatic… it’s a MUST-WATCH!

Yes, Rang De Basanti is a beautiful blend of a gamut of emotions and stories and inspiration. It’s a story of the re-awakening of youth today; of how a group of young men with not a care in the world learnt from the life of 4 dynamic Indian revolutionaries during the British Raj – Bhagath Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad, Ashfakulla and Ramprasad Bismil.

Let’s look at who’s who:

Sue (Alice Patten) is a seeker – of truth, courage, values and everything important that is now lost in this world today. She finds and reads through the personal diary of her grandfather who was a British soldier in India during the Raj, a correct, stern officer torn between duty and conscience. He records his experiences and thoughts on the revolutionaries – admiring them, respecting them, yet unable to speak out because of duty. Sue then decides to come to India and make a film on these freedom fighters. Earnest, dogged, determined (she even takes Hindi language classes); she arrives in Delhi, is swept away by her friend Sonia and HER friends. In her weeks and months, she discovers friends, friendships, insights into the minds of great Indian freedom fighters and true love.

Sonia (Soha Ali Khan Pataudi) is the group’s pet. Smart, optimistic, righteous – she is probably the only focussed person among the entire bunch of pranksters she’s friends with. A student of the International Studies, she helps her friend Sue find the right actors for her documentary.

DJ (Aamir Khan) is Diljeet. And he’s exactly like his name suggests – always devil-may-care, always out for a good time, sweet, charming, hilarious and not a single focus in life. Other than having a good time with his friends. As he tries to help Sue out (while losing his heart to her) by playing the part of Chandrashekhar Azad, something changes in him and he is a new man with a mission.

Karan Singhania (Sidharth) is a troubled young man from a mega-rich family. He has lost something precious in his life, including the zest to live among the colours of India. He is dispassionate yet disgusted with the India of today and can’t wait to finish college and leave for the U.S. As he learns more about the Indian Freedom Revolution, it’s as if the spirit of Bhagat Singh himself (whose character he plays) awakens him and he sets out to do right by his motherland.

Sukhi (Sharman Joshi) is a sweetheart. He’s a baby; he’s hilarious, doomed to single-status and devoted to DJ. A Jat from Haryana, complete with the accent and the reluctance to speak in English, he’s a breath of fresh air in the entire group – and playing a serious character for Sue’s movie brings out the intensity of the real comrade in him.

Aslam (Kunal Kapoor) is tall, dark, handsome and a poet at heart. He’s part of an Orthodox Muslim family struggling to maintain its identity and goodness in a world that’s filled with prejudice today. Trying to fit into a society which the members are sure they are not really accepted. But Aslam wants no part of all this – he is beyond religious boundaries. It’s his friends and time with them that’s important. So much so, that he finds his own family atmosphere suffocating and his friends his closest family. Playing the role of Ashfakulla opens his ears to the reverberant poetry that lifted the will and spirit of the revolutionaries in the pre-Independence era.

Lakshman Pandey (Atul Kulkarni) is a radical Hindu activist who wants to wipe out anything NOT Swadeshi – western “dhichk dhichk” music, the wantonness of youth today and Muslims. The strength of his beliefs brings to Sue’s mind Ramprasad Bismil, who, along with Ashfakulla, was pivotal in Bhagat Singh’s endeavours. Being the group of friends, living their lives and watching people he believed in let him down opens his eyes to his follies; like his prejudice and hatred of Aslam. He realises, from the way he starts to feel about Aslam, how Bismil felt about Ashfakulla.

Flt. Lt. Ajay Rathod (Madhavan) – well, the cast list shows a “guest appearance”, but this particular “guest” was perhaps one of the most important characters in the film. Ajay is everything good, kind, right, courageous and patriotic. Lover and fiancé to Sonia, he is a firm believer in the goodness that is within India and how it is OUR responsibility to do something about the ills of this country. In fact, one can even say that without Ajay, the “awakening” of the others would never have happened.

This movie is a perfect mix of Indian dramatism and western realism. Picturisation is slick and the dialogues beautifully meshed and delivered. One would think Aamir would have hogged the limelight. No way. The amazing thing about this movie was that each and every character was so strong, one could not have done without the other. Aamir is, as usual, perfect in his delivery and emoting. A.R. Rahman’s music is simply wonderful – his signature is the beautiful harmony of a myriad voices and instruments.

And you come out of the theatre wondering if you should still be laughing at the jokes, or crying, or feel patriotic…

Galatta.com votes this A SUPERB EXPERIENCE – GO SEE IT!