Masaan lives up to the expectation of the fans. It is based on a wonderful concept that is presented even more beautifully. Neeraj Ghaywan does not disappoint and comes up with brilliant work. May it be cinematography, editing, screenplay or soundtrack there is not much that could have been done any better than it has been done in the movie. The social issues are well stressed without losing the engagement of viewers who will find it very relatable. Masaan hasn’t been let down in the acting department too. Richa Chadha and Sanjay Mishra are great actors and they justified themselves. However the brilliance in acting wasn’t concentrated on the top only. The supporting cast has done a fantastic job. The likes of Shweta Tripathi, Bhagwan Tiwari and Nikhil Sahni deserve the plaudits. Vicky Kaushal does deserve a special mention for his natural acting and dedicated efforts. All this brought together makes this movie a must watch.

One of the many beautiful aspects of Masaan is that none of the characters give up. They are caught up in the social and moral confines but are ready to take them on within their own little spheres and ways. Masaan exposes the dichotomy that conservative and rebellious attitude exist in the same space. The characters of the film have all been brought with social and religious values/beliefs but they want to break the shackles of the society to make space for love, humanity and individual identities. The film also takes on the caste and gender divide that continues haunt our society. From "ghar ki ijjat" being a girl's responsibility to the tragedy of doms who are called 'dom raja' despite leading an impoverished life because of the discrimination they face in the society; Masaan portrays it all with honesty.  Masaan end abruptly halts the philosophical and lyrical journey that Grover and Ghaywan have woven throughout the film. Suddenly, it seems the filmmaker isn't sure whether he wants the milleu or the stories as pivotal point for the narrative. Apart from the last minutes, however, one cannot complain about the film. Varun Grover has written a tight screenplay that leaves no space for loopholes or stretched moments throughout the 109-minutes of the movie. His dialogues touch an emotional chord and bring out small-town world where the story is set. Masaan is a hard-hitting narrative set against the powerful backdrop that will stay with you long after you've left the theatres. It is and beautiful cinematic experience you don't want to miss.

Maybe it takes a fresh, unspoilt-by-Bollywood mind to capture the subtlest of hues of first love. And tragedy. And struggle. And overriding all, hope: Untarnished, unadulterated, but with that pinch of salt. Debutant director Neeraj Ghaywan's Masaan is emotionally devastating at one level, and even more hopeful at another. Masaan drives home that age-old, simple adage simply: This too shall pass. Just that in the process, Ghaywan's debut ends up breaking your heart, and makes you smile a teary smile. Among Masaan's numerous strong points is the acting by its lead cast. Richa Chadha is spellbinding as Devi. Richa does apt justice to her Devi. Sanjaiy Mishra fits his role. Newcomers Vicky Kaushal and Shweta Tripathi make enough impact in a film where the other, experienced actors could have overshadowed them. In all, despite the occasional slackening of pace, Masaan deserves a standing ovation. And more than just one watch. Masaan does with you what spring does with Neruda's cherry trees.

Neeraj Ghaywan’s deftly crafted Masaan is a multi-layered portrait of a hidebound society in rapid flux. Dripping pain and poetry in equal measure, the film presents intertwined stories of repression, rebellion and repentance set against the funeral pyres of a Varanasi cremation ghat.  Its multiple strands add up to a cinematic tapestry that is both moving and stimulating. Its depiction of disruptive social change – represented by the growing impingement by Facebook and YouTube – and how it plays out in the lives of four small-town individuals is subtle, naturalistic and sure-handed. Masaan is not the kind of film that is out to grab the audience by the scruff of the neck and drag them through the fire smouldering disturbingly under the surface of its troubled universe. The acting is from the very top drawer. Sanjay Mishra, as always, makes every moment of silence, every gesture and every word count. Richa Chadha inhabits not just the body of Devi Pathak, but her entire soul. The result is as powerful a screen heroine as any we have seen in years. Vicky Kaushal and Shweta Tripathi deliver a pair of luminous performances that stay with you long after the film is over. This dazzling debut film is an unmissable gem.

Neeraj Ghaywan’s directorial debut Masaan blurs the lines, and in striking relatable fashion: does untouchability even matter on the other end of a Facebook friend request? This is a fine little film about morality and loss and loneliness and Banaras and… well, and a balloon. Sanjay Mishra is wonderful as an old translator who sits on the Benaras ghats while Richa Chadha, playing his conflicted daughter, goes through the motions too blankly. Yet for all its beautiful cinematography, the imagery in Masaan ends up soothing and never scorching, which feels like a bit of a letdown given the stunning potential on display. This is a lovely, lyrical film (with a great soundtrack by Indian Ocean) but I wish the song could have said more than que sera sera. These are the unforgettable bits. The lines work, Ghaywan. Forget life, death, blackmail, Benaras and corpses; balloon is all you need.

At the heart of the film is the tussle between what has always been, and what can be. No one can see the future, but it is there, stretching right in front of the conflicted Devi and the dealing-with-heartbreak-and-loss Deepak. Which makes ‘Masaan’, for all its underlying grimness, a film about hope and redemption, underlined by the fine writing, both in the departments of script and lyrics: ‘tu kisi rail si guzarti hai, main kisi pul sa thartharata hoon’ is deeply philosophical, sensuous and spiritual at the same time. And an apt metaphor for the film: a river runs through it, so does a bridge, and both bring people in, and take them away. “Aadmi aata hai, jaata hai. Shareer nashwar hai, aatma amar hai” (the body dies, but the soul lives forever): this is the lesson that Deepak internalises, and again it is apt that it comes to Vicky Kaushal, the boy who becomes man so movingly, and who is the find of the film. The film also brings back many fading influences from a time when Hindi cinema knew how to do its job effectively. ‘Masaan’ is imbued with a sense of place and time, poetry and lyricism, and it captures the essence of Banaras, constant-yet-changeable, with felicity and feeling. It also announces the arrival of new talents in its writer and director: Grover’s story is eminently worth telling, and Ghaywan tells it beautifully.

Masaan, an Indo-French collaboration that won accolades at Cannes earlier on in May, has adept story-telling by Neeraj Ghaywan, a Anurag Kashyap alumni. The film unspools in an unhurried manner, occasionally tugging hard at your heartstrings. The urgency with which youngsters from India's heartland feel the need to discover Facebook, forbidden fruit and freedom has been captured well. The performances of the entire cast including that of the child actor Nikhil Sahni are praiseworthy. Masaan has pure desi magic woven in.