Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi

“Cartoonish stunts… a bit too cardboard… The overall impact is admittedly Amar Chitra Katha… There is much that is laughable, not least the British villains who attend court wearing bowlers and top hats and retire for wartime sleep in black satin pyjamas, but like the history books have always advertised about Jhansi, this is a one-woman show. Ranaut is glorious… and slices down enemy soldiers with a fury that must surely have injured some extras on the set.”

Rating: 3 stars | Full review

“Blows history to smithereens and reduces the Rani of Jhansi, one of the greatest warriors India has ever known, to a stunt queen.”

Rating: 1 star | Full review

“Bollywood maybe opportunistic and spineless, but its members, no matter how divided, at least agree on how to market and monetise their country.”

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“Is this the Queen we know or need?”

Rating: 2.5 stars | Full review

“Ranaut in full battle mode is a sight to behold: harnessed, charged up, tearing and slashing through the rows of ‘dushman’ soldiers, all snarly and bloody.”

Rating: 2.5 stars | Full review

“If Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi wore the kind of ridiculously fashioned trousseau that Kangana Ranaut sports in this sartorially encumbered biopic about the valorous Queen then she certainly wouldn’t have won any battle worth eulogising about.”

Rating: 2 stars | Full review

“Period films will often tell you more about the state of the country than contemporary ones… Manikarnika… is a slow-building, sustained surge of patriotic fervour, as messy and inflammable as a geyser on an oil rig.”

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“Kangana Ranaut is on fire as the iconic Rani Lakshmibai. Her spine is erect, her eyes are unblinking and she seems propelled by some other-worldly power… Her valor is hypnotic. So are her exquisite Neeta Lulla-designed saris and jewelry – this is a queen who wears pearls into battle. And there aren’t many leading ladies who can pull that off without looking ridiculous.”

Rating: 3 stars | Full review