Ranbir, Alia, and Vicky Caught in a Creative Shift: Is ‘Love & War’ Dropping Action for Emotion?
Everyone is talking about the “massive scale” and “war sequences” of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s next big thing, but the real story is that the maestro might be getting cold feet about the gunpowder and falling back in love with… well, love.
It’s Friday, 13 February 2026, and the buzz in Mumbai’s film circles is reaching a boiling point. Is the “War” in Love & War about to take a backseat for the “Love”?
You know how SLB works. He is a perfectionist. He doesn’t just make movies; he crafts experiences that look like moving paintings. But word on the street is that after looking at the initial rushes of his most anticipated project featuring Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, and Vicky Kaushal, Bhansali has decided to pivot.
Instead of a climax that ends with a loud, explosive battlefield sequence, he is reportedly moving the lens closer to the faces of his lead trio. He wants the “emotional carnage” to hit harder than the actual cannons.
This isn’t just a minor tweak in the editing room. This is a fundamental shift in the movie’s soul. The film was pitched as a grand war epic, a spiritual successor to the classics of the 60s. But if you’ve been following Bhansali’s journey, you know he lives for the “Dopamine Gap” of human heartbreak. He thrives in those quiet, devastating moments where a single tear carries more weight than a thousand soldiers.
According to a report by Variety India, the decision to re-edit and potentially reshoot portions of the climax came after a secret screening of the rough cut. The source claims that while the war scenes were “visually breathtaking,” they felt a bit detached from the intense chemistry between Ranbir and Alia.
Bhansali apparently felt that the audience would care more about who survives the heartbreak than who survives the war.
It’s a bold move, especially considering the massive budget already sunk into the action choreography. We are talking about hundreds of extras, period-accurate weaponry, and sets that took months to build. But that is exactly why he is SLB. He is willing to burn the set if the emotion isn’t “correct.”
As per Collider, the film’s narrative is heavily inspired by the 1964 classic Sangam, which also dealt with a high-stakes love triangle set against a backdrop of duty.
However, Bhansali wants to modernize the conflict. He wants to explore the “toxic” side of sacrifice. By focusing more on the love triangle during the climax, he is making a bet that the Indian audience—which is currently obsessed with intense, character-driven dramas—will prefer a psychological resolution over a pyrotechnic one.
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The Hollywood Reporter confirmed earlier today that the post-production timeline has been slightly extended to accommodate these changes. This means the VFX teams now have a different set of priorities.
Instead of perfecting the smoke and fire of the explosions, they are working on the subtle atmosphere of the final confrontation between the three leads. It’s about the lighting, the shadows, and the “loneliness” that Bhansali portrays so beautifully in films like Guzaarish or Bajirao Mastani.
Ranbir Kapoor, who is known to be a “director’s actor,” is reportedly totally on board with this shift. He has always excelled in roles where he has to convey deep internal turmoil. Think Rockstar or Tamasha. Placing him in a high-tension love triangle climax is like giving a master painter a bigger canvas. Alia and Vicky, too, are said to be preparing for additional “close-up heavy” sessions to capture the new emotional beats.
I’ll be honest: I think this is a genius move. We have seen enough “war movies” recently where the scale is huge but the heart is hollow. If Bhansali tries to compete with the Baahubalis or RRRs of the world in terms of “mass action,” he might lose his unique voice. His strength is the “poetry of pain.” By doubling down on the love triangle, he is giving us something only he can provide.
It’s risky, yes, because people expect “War” when it’s in the title, but a Bhansali war is always fought in the heart anyway. This could turn Love & War from a “hit action movie” into a “timeless classic.”
Original Source: First reported by Variety India, with additional production details confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter.
Question For You: Would you rather see a massive action-packed war finale or a heart-wrenching emotional showdown between Ranbir, Alia, and Vicky? Let me know in the comments!
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