Much of the film dazzles, but I found myself longing for some soul.

Lookswise, the film is pure gorgeousness. Trouble is, it is also largely overwrought and inert. The meticulous detailing in the re-creation of one of the most pulsating periods of Bombay’s history, is terrific. Much of the film stays, mostly and disappointingly, on its sumptuous surface.

Bombay Velvet is an obviously shallow film, an all-out retro masala-movie with homage on the rocks and cocktail-shakers brimming with cliche…

There is almost too much plot, and yet it isn’t gripping. Key plot points pop up and then randomly disappear. The climactic sequence has power and poetry, but it feels like too little too late. Bombay Velvet had the potential to be the definitive Mumbai noir. But the centre does not hold.

Detailing is Bombay Velvet’s real deal and that makes it a watchable movie. Also, don‘t expect it to be another film on the line of Gangs Of Wasseypur 1 and 2. This time, it’s more about the masses.

The visual grandeur and scale aside, Bombay Velvet fails to live up to its ambition. Don’t even try to search for sharp dialogues and Kashyap’s trademark wicked humour. That’s probably reserved for his indie ventures only.

Bombay Velvet is too bloodless to stun, too passionless to stir…paints a pretty postcard but not the soul of its decade.

Bombay Velvet spends too much time on period details and loses focus…is marred by weak storytelling

What you leave the hall with is a sense of disappointment. Bombay Velvet has neither the softness of velvet nor the sweep of the city it is an ode to.

Unlike its pugilist protagonist, the film punches well below its weight.

The plot also wobbles between love story, crime saga, urban legend and corruption drama. Between lovers’ fights, gun-battles and newspaper wars, you’re thinking The. Godfather, Casablanca, Chicago – but you want to feel Bombay Velvet more.

Its cinematography and performances, particularly Ranbir’s edgy ‘big shot’, merit an extra half-star. But while Bombay Velvet is stylish, this fabric could have been smoother.

Some viewers might complain of an overdose of blood and gore, although I did enjoy the stylized gun-battle between a machine-gun wielding Ranbir and Khambatta’s henchmen. The ending feels clumsy and needlessly violent, with Kashyap trying to tie loose ends with a bare postscript before the final credits roll.

Bombay Velvet will go down in history as the film that had everything going for it – the actors, the budget, the scale and the promotion. And still somehow got derailed.

If you are someone who wears velvet everyday, watch it.

…doesn’t match up to the expectations one had from it. Despite all the grandiosity, one needs to be well-equipped in patience in order to savour the film. The external embellishments render the film quite heavy. It teeters on the edge, but ultimately manages to sail through. Bombay Velvet is grand, exquisite, elaborate … and deserves a watch for Kashyap’s style.

Bombay Velvet tries to be a classic fable. It would have been, if Kashyap had focussed on writing his film as he does on set design. Pardon the cliche, but that is the film’s epic flaw.

Kashyap’s foray into mainstream is ambitious in its scale but flawed in its execution.

…a visually enjoyable period drama. The love story is taut, chemistry is sizzling but thanks to an overstretched plot and a cliched second half, the film disappoints a little.

…a visual masterpiece that is rich in form. If you want to be wowed by the detailing of the 1960s, superb performances of Ranbir Kapoor, Karan Johar and Anushka Sharma, then go ahead and watch this film.

The film uses many real life references right from the prohibition which closed down many clubs in Bombay to mill workers agitation and the land grab that happened to form the famous Nariman Point are all part of the story, which is fabulous.

What doesn’t particularly work well is the love story which is more or less like any another love story but the city angle that Kashyap has explored is unique in many ways.

Kashyap made films from the heart and it struck a chord and here, he dilutes his style, attempting cosmetic precision – and the film remains just that – a superficial story with superfluous characters.

Having said that, Anurag Kashyap does manage to make a movie that is up there with Hollywood standards. In its two-hours-thirty-minutes runtime, it manages more than a handful of memorable moments. The romantic formula might’ve let it down, but the real story of this film is how well it’s conceived and presented. A certified visual delight.

If you want to watch Bombay in its pristine glory of the past, BOMBAY VELVET is a must watch. However, if content is what you are looking for, stay away!

It’s a Phantom let down!

This film is more like a roller coaster ride, as it takes you on a dizzy high with its charming ambience and music that is bound to stay with you for long, but later you are brought down not so gently with the underwhelming plot and lack of punches. Watch it for the experience.

Bombay Velvet for all its sins of excesses, is the gangster epic that Bollywood was waiting to unleash. Tactile, smokey, powerful, passionate and pulsating with periodicity…this movie is an experience that’s more remarkable for what it attempts than what it actually achieves.

Despite the build-up and grandeur, Kashyap’s ‘Bombay Velvet’ falls short of being his masterpiece.

Ranbir, Anushka’s sizzling chemisty can’t save boring second half…However, make of it what you will, but for all its weaknesses, what Bombay Velvet lacks in complexity, it ultimately makes up for with its sheer beauty.

Mean, macho Ranbir Kapoor may bore you to death…

Ultimately, Bombay Velvet is a thoroughly disappointing and frustrating film. There are some powerful ideas that have been lain to waste here, like the journalistic rivalry between Khambatta and Mistry, the subtle insertion and acceptance of a certain kind of criminal into ‘polite’ society, and the impact of violence on a person’s worldview. This should have been a film that seduced us with its beauty and then savaged us cruelly. Instead, we’re victims of a lavish boredom. By the time the last bullet is fired, all you can feel is relief that Bombay Velvet is over.

…tries too hard to be a Taj Mahal. Ultimately, though, it just ends up feeling like monumental vanity.

… is a colossal waste of money and resources. It is devoid of entertainment value and will, therefore, fail miserably at the box office. There is nothing velvet-like about it. Rather, it is as coarse as unprocessed jute.

Regrettably the film turns out to be a way short of what is expected of Anurag Kashyap. At its best Bombay Velvet is a superficial, average attempt at an entertainer.

For a moment if you disregard this pic’s massive budget, it does not even count as director Anurag Kashyap’s most ambitious work. The inter-generational saga Gangs of Wasseypur (2012) was—both in its scope and scale. A strong voice-narration (often perceived as lazy writing) wonderfully helped piece together that 320-minute film. There is none of it here. It probably looks messy as a result. God knows it’s tough to keep it simple.

Apart from Ranbir’s conviction as a suave goon, a fierce lover – don’t go expecting too much from it.

Bombay Velvet boasts of intense action and an alluring pair of leads, but a lack of novelty in the plot makes it a flawed ride.

Even if you are an ardent Anurag fan and are expecting another Gangs of Wasseypur, better give it a miss instead of getting monumentally disappointed. However, if you have nothing else to do this weekend and want to have a feeling of how Bombay…sorry Mumbai looked like in the ‘60s, it’s worth taking that risk.

Bombay Velvet is frustrating and exhilarating in equal measure. Though his ambition is plain to see, I prefer the Kashyap who delivers the shock of the new rather than the glamour of old.

I left the theater with a question. I enjoyed the film while watching it, found it slightly long but it didn’t test patience at point. I liked the characters, the dialogue, the flow of the narrative, the plot till it gets carried away much like the lead character, Balraj. But, the film doesn’t leave a mark that will remind you of what you felt while watching the film, like most good films do, certainly like all Anurag Kashyap films. It doesn’t stay with you.

Had this universe existed in a film not directed by Kashyap, I suspect it would have been appreciated more. But his voice precedes him, for he represents a fearless brand of Indian cinema. In this context, Bombay Velvet is a moderate Hollywood imitation; significant for the craft it brings on screen, but little more than an excessive footnote in a universal genre. I’d rather revisit On The Waterfront or Goodfellas instead.

midst all the attention on detailing of the costumes and computer generated imagery, the screenplay loses direction. While the motivations of two rival newspaper barons are clear their actions get just short of ridiculous in the second half. From blackmail to look alikes, the film threatens to become a potboiler of the ’70s. Ultimately, the writing affects the performances as well. Balraj’s return to the boxing ring after each turmoil in his life is gimmicky.

In one of the most spectacular-looking Hindi films in recent times, Kashyap transports us effortlessly to a different age and time.
Despite pacing issues, the tendency to overstate the obvious and an inconsequential Tommy gun shootout, the film stands true to an indie filmmaker’s idea of a blockbuster. The film is every cinematic cliché and so much more. It is every crime movie you have already seen but so much more.

… makes for a good one-time watch primarily due to good performances from its lead actors and a reminder of a forgotten era.

The movie is quite high on violence quotient and those with weak hearts would find certain sequences to be quite disturbing. Nonetheless, as a mere exercise in style, Bombay Velvet a commendable attempt but its prospects at the box office look a bit bleak.

Depsite these few flaws, Bombay Velvet can be watched for Ranbir-Anushka’s sizzling chemistry amidst drastically transforming Bombay into Mumbai. Also be ready for Karan Johar’s surprise act.

Bombay Velvet is beautifully shot, beautifully acted, beautifully edited but remained beautifully boring!! Watch it if you are a Ranbir-Anushka fan.

…a definite watch for fans of love stories, high voltage drama, retro flicks & RK- Anushka. Watch it for a solid dose of retro romance, glamour & past glory.

The film is clichéd and a done to death love story laced with an over ambitious protagonist.
It’s like one of those beauties who you see at high society parties but once you hear them talk, you feel like “What the F….”
Watch it for the experience and the performances.