Beiimaan Love review: Sunny Leone has limited acting skills, but her sincerity stands out

There were two things that struck me while watching Beiimaan Love. First that this was the first Sunny Leone-starrer I was watching that required her to emote, that gave her a meaty, well-rounded role with shades of grey but also ensured there were enough scenes of seduction to satisfy her fans. As the lyric of a song in the film goes, “Mere peeche, mere peeche, mere peeche Hindustan hai.” Second, that in spite of several minutes of “love-making”, the lead actors, and lovers — Leone and Rajniesh Duggall never kiss on the lips. But with the camera almost always being on a close up shot of Leone, or tracking the contours of her shapely figure, it certainly takes the pressure off the leading man to maintain his six-pack. [caption id=“attachment_3050972” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Sunny Leone in Beiimaan Love. Youtube screen grab.[/caption] But I have gotten ahead of myself. There is a story to writer-director-producer Rajeev Chaudhari’s love drama Beiimaan Love and it’s all about vengeance. First the drunk and philandering heir to a jewelry business Raj Malhotra (Duggall) wants to avenge the humiliation meted out to him by Sunaina Verma (Leone) when she slaps him in public. Never mind that he forces himself on to her and does not accept her firm verbal rejection. He makes a wager with this friend that he will have her in his bedroom within 10 days. If she’s an MBA in marketing, I am a double MBA in love, says Raj as he sets into motion a plan to woo and seduce Sunaina. But along the way, the unsuspecting Sunaina and Raj fall well and truly in love. So much so that Leone returns home from her high-powered job in the shortest, tightest dress with six-inch heels and proceeds to gaily chop carrots. However the path of love is littered with plot twists such as a loud-mouthed and interfering family friend, a secret past, a woman’s own desire for retribution and Raj’s wild and voluptuous fiancée (the scenes with Zeisha Nancy and Avtar Gill as her father are the highlights of this drab drama, but not in a good way). The final question is who will win the in this game of deception and heartbreak? Certainly not the audience, though one must credit Sunny Leone’s dubbing artist for bringing authenticity and Chaudhari for casting Leone against type – as a shrewd marketing MBA and woman entrepreneur of the year and all. Leone may have limited acting skills but whatever she does, she does with such sincerity – whether as the homely daughter or the savvy businesswoman or even as the deeply in love girl – that you do root for her Sunaina. Duggal postures well, but other than he appears to be following directing cues to the T, bringing little depth to his part. As the last scene ends, the following phrase comes up on screen: ‘Never take a woman for granted’. A noble sentiment, but in filmmaking one should not take the script, screenplay or craft for granted either.