R…Rajkumar, a mysterious stranger, arrives in town against the backdrop of two waring drug lords fighting over the opium crop.  As he watches them tear the marketplace apart, Rajkumar sees a damsel in distress about to be seriously hurt by a bullet.  He pushes her out of harm’s way and is instantly smitten by her beauty. Rajkumar becomes obsessed with ‘Lollipop’, as he calls her. Shahid Kapoor, as Rajkumar, plays a young man working for a way up in the world of crime, when love strikes. Every time he sees Chanda, aka ‘Lollipop’, he becomes awestruck and speechless in her presence. He finally resorts to stalking her and teasing her mercilessly.  He rescues an old man from a burning house, just to impress her. Chanda is a feisty, strong-willed young woman, and she isn’t about to take any nonsense from Raj. Chanda, played by Sonakshi Sinhi, speaks her mind. Unfortunately, she is about to run up against the rules of the patriarchal society she lives in. Raj starts working for Shivraj (drug lord #1), eventually proving himself and becoming Shivraj’s right-hand man.  One night when Raj steals into Parmar’s (drug lord #2) compound intent on harming him he sees ‘Lollipop’. He realizes Chanda is Parmar’s niece. He sneaks into her room and finally gets her to confess that their attraction is mutual.  But, things are about to become more complicated for Rajkumar and Chanda.

Shivraj has a personal astrologer (played on the manic side by veteran actor Asrani).  The astrologer sends Shivraj to dip three times in the river to ‘change the direction of his life. As fate would have it, he sees Chanda, who is also dipping.  Shivraj likes what he sees, and makes an offer of marriage to Chanda’s uncle.  Parmar is eager to accept Shivraj, figuring he will lose an enemy and gain a new family member.  Now Rajkumar must put an end to both drug lords if he is to have Chanda for his own.

R…Rajkumar is a great masala movie. It is, first of all, a love story between the unlikely pair of goonda  Rajkumar and lovely Chanda, it has lots of action sequences, comical characters, catchy songs, and memorable dances.  Shahid Kapoor, not a tall, bulked-up actor, does a believable job with action sequences because of his agility. Sonakshi Sinhi is beautiful and projects the right amount of bitterness and sweetness. As a couple, they are a fresh and delightful pair.

All of the songs are an integral part of their “courtship”. Shahid is known for his dancing ability, but Sonakshi was in perfect sync with him.  The dancing revealed sweet chemistry between them. My favorite songs were: ‘Gandi Baat’ (Bad Things), very quirky and entertaining dance steps with Shahid and Prabhu Dheva; ‘Saree Ke Fall Sa’ for its’ rhythm, lyrics, terrific dance steps, and salt desert location; and finally, ‘Dhokha Dhadi’, a soft and lovely song in a beautiful beachside setting. Several of the character actors were well written and very funny. Sonu Sood, as Shivraj, the tall and good-looking thug, was charming trying to win Chanda’s heart by learning to dance Shahid style, and trying his best to be a “gentleman”. Ashish Vidhyarti, as Parmar, was especially funny in the scene where he receives a whipping with a belt from Rajkumar. R…Rajkumar is was written and directed by Prabhu Dheva.