|
|
| |
 |
In
the picture
Bachna Ae Haseeno ***1/2
*ing Ranbir Kapoor, Bipasha Basu, Minisha Lamba, Deepika Padukone
Directed by: Siddharth Anand
Producer: Aditya Chopra (Yash Raj Films)
Tagline: 'Fall in love...thrice!' |
| |
| Bachna
Ae Haseeno - to sum up in two words - is 'stupidly cute'. It's the
kind of movie that leaves you grinning idiotically, taken in by the
magic of romantic comedies. From the pre-release promos and songs,
Bachna Ae Haseeno had all the promise of a hit - the presence of not
one, not two, but three leading ladies - Deepika Padukone, Minisha
Lamba and Bipasha Basu, as well as Ranbir Kapoor. Ranbir is yet another
progeny of the famous Kapoor clan - the son of Rishi Kapoor and Neetu
Singh. And after his dismal debut film - Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Saawariya
with Sonam Kapoor, he's finally made it to the Bollywood A-list with
Bachna Ae Haseeno. |
| |
 |
| |
While
Bachna Ae Haseeno would have been a treat to watch in a cinema, Yash
Raj Films are not coming to Pakistan anytime soon. Unfortunately,
the variations of pirated prints doing the rounds have various scenes,
and even songs, deleted. Luckily enough, Bachna Ae Haseeno's storyline
is simple enough to understand even with the missing scenes.
The film starts off with the promo track 'Bachna Ae Haseeno', where
the filmmakers have sought to recreate the magic associated with Rishi
Kapoor's glam years, by remixing 'Bachna Ae Haseeno' from Rishi's
film Hum Kisi Se Kum Naheen, and having all the actresses dance with
Ranbir. Following this very nicely done cover/remix, the film starts
off with Raj (Ranbir) narrating the saga of how he fell in love...thrice.
Yash Raj Films has finally gotten the formula right with this film.
Instead of trying to create Disney-esque movies (Ta Ra Rum Pum and
Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic, for example) that have flopped miserably at
the Indian box office - they've decided to capitalize on the success
of one of their biggest hits ever - Dilwale Dilhuniya Le Jayeinge
(DDLJ). When it was released in 1995, DDLJ became a cult phenomenon,
skyrocketed the careers of both Shahrukh Khan and Kajol and it spun
enough romantic-comedy magic to last years (it's still running in
cinemas in India). Bachna Ae Haseeno uses DDLJ as the cultural reference
it has rightly become over the past 13 years since its release - right
down to the mandolin-strumming Raj!
Raj's saga of love and haseenas begins at the age of 16, when he's
on a trip with school friends through Europe on Euro Rail (and so
the DDLJ references begin...) On the train; he bumps into Mahi (Minisha),
who's on a trip through Europe as well. At their stop in Switzerland,
Raj discovers that Mahi loves DDLJ and is idealistically waiting for
her own 'Raj' (Shahrukh's name in DDLJ, and several other Bollywood
hits) to sweep her off her feet. In true Raj style, he sits in a square
and strums the famous opening tune to 'Tujhe Dekha To Ye Jana Sanam',
attracting Mahi's attention. They travel to Zurich together overnight,
dance to a song and make promises of undying love et al before Raj
deposits Mahi safely to her parents at the Zurich airport. |
| |
 |
| |
However Raj isn't really in love with Mahi and is showing off
to his friends about his first conquest with an air of bravado
at the airport when she overhears him. Heartbreak, heartbreak!
The film then skips a few years and onto Raj's life as a computer
games developer at Microsoft (which has several plugs throughout
the film) and his next conquest - Radhika (Bipasha). Radhika
is looking to break into Bollywood and has a live-in relationship
with Raj, which he takes for granted until he has to move to
Australia. While Radhika assumes they'll get married and move
there together; Raj - who panics as any 20-something man would
at the thought of marriage - dumps Radhika at the altar and
flies off to Sydney.
In Sydney, he meets his third love - Gayatri (Deepika), an independent,
free spirited girl who doesn't believe in marriage. While this
part of the film was apparently shot before Ranbir and Deepika
began dating in real life, it did become an integral part of
the 'pull' towards the film. Unfortunately for Raj, he falls
in love with Gayatri and proposes marriage to her - only to
be rudely rebuffed. Having the tables turn on him for once makes
him realize he needs to do something to turn his life around
- and what ensues next is a saga of more entertaining DDLJ inspired
twists and turns.
Bachna Ae Haseeno shows the transition of Raj from a 16 year
old to a 30 year old as a young, flippant teenager to an older,
mature person. It also shows how his various loves have fared
in their lives post their breakups with Raj, but you'll have
to see the film to figure out how that takes place! The reason
why, among other things, Bachna Ae Haseeno is a hit is because
the characters seem real - from Raj's commitment issues and
playboy aspirations, to the women's dreams of highflying careers
or Prince Charming… |
| |
| It
also proves a number of things: Ranbir Kapoor has truly arrived,
and is undoubtedly a star. While the other hot newcomer of this
year - Imran Khan - was still somewhat awkward and wooden in
Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, Ranbir is a true natural. On the other
hand, Deepika has no spark, despite having a pivotal role -
and fails to impress. While Minisha Lamba shows great promise
and an uncanny resemblance to Preity Zinta, it's Bipasha Basu
who truly sizzles. While the pre-release hype centered on Bipasha
being older than Ranbir and not suited to him, in the film she
proves that wrong completely. Keep an eye out for the brilliant
scene where she throws a glass of water in someone's face and
says 'Maine Evian maanga tha, gutter ka paani nahee!' (I asked
for Evian, not water from the gutter!) |
 |
| |
|
And most importantly for Yash Raj Films – Bachna Ae Haseeno
is a hit, and their first after a year (the last hit was the
Shahrukh Khan starrer Chak De India in August 2007). While they
had to capitalize on DDLJ, favorite locale Switzerland and clichéd
twists, it works - because Bachna Ae Haseeno is entertaining
and a cinematic guilty pleasure. Whether you watch it for the
great songs, the beautiful locations, Ranbir Kapoor/Bipasha
Basu or just to relive the DDLJ magic, Bachna Ae Haseeno is
not to be missed!
-- Saba Imtiaz
*YUCK
**WHATEVER
***GOOD
****SUPER
*****AWESOME |
| |
|
|
