I Hate Luv Storys is the latest ideal candy floss offering for the young generation with scenes thrown in from Bollywood classics like Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayen Gay, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Dil Chahta Hai, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and the likes. The plot of the film is simple and clichéd; Imran Khan as Jay [mind you it's pronounced J not Jai and is quite the "it" name in Bollywood these days; remember Hrithik in Kites] is a playboy who does not believe in love and sappy love stories but is working as a set designer with one of the biggest filmmakers of Indian cinema, Veer Kapoor. He is an extremely messed up and laid back man, who comes to work late, drinks before work and trashes women. Loyalty is just not his cup of tea.

On the other hand, Simran [Sonam Kapoor] is a hopeless romantic who thinks her own life is no less than a perfect love story. She is organized, disciplined, and extremely professional and in short, the exact opposite of Jay. With an ideal job and a perfect fiancé, Raj Dholakia [see, the name's filmy too] played by Sameer Dattani she has no idea how her life's going to change when she starts working with Jay! As predictable as it might sound, conflicts occur between the two but eventually they become friends and Simran falls in love with Mr Wrong [Jay] forgetting about her perfect Mr Right. Jay rejects her giving her no option but to return back to Mr Right.

Clearly the plot has been done way too many times in the Indian cinema; the film is full of clichés and you experience the feeling of déjà vu several times but there's something in the film that makes the audiences love it. The actors have done a superb job. Imran Khan fits the role ideally and plays it even more perfectly with such apparent ease that it makes his acting look very natural. However, he still needs to learn how to cry, or act so! His emotions and body language are commendable. Imran's facial expressions added a lot of life to his acting and a fun element to the character.

Sonam plays her age and that's one of the reasons she seems apt for the role. She has improved greatly if you compare her acting in I Hate Luv Storys with her previous roles. She also looks beautiful and very stylish throughout the film. Imran and Sonam absolutely complement each other and can be a promising jori for future Bollywood movies.

The costumes are done by Manish Malhotra and Sonam's dresses are beautiful. She has carried off those clothes very well too. The contemporary stylish girl avatar really suits her. Various characters wear tees with witty statements and graffiti which are really unique, funky and make you laugh. Such small things show how much effort has been put into a film.

Kevin Dave who plays the role of Imran's best friend is hilarious. Sameer Dattani delivers his dialogues in an extremely monotonous tone but then his role was of a boring boyfriend so we can't really criticize him. Aamir Ali who is performing the role of the actor is another worthy mention and Bruna Abdullah is great eye candy in the film.

Even though the content is not fresh at all, the dialogues and one-liners are still witty and sarcastic. There's so much fun in the film that you will spend half your time laughing without bothering about where the story is going. However, the first half of the movie is slow in terms of the plot; a little more editing would have made it better. Debutant director Punit Malhotra's (in case you are wondering, yes he is related to Manish Malhotra) writing could have been much better considering the amount of resources he had. Throughout the film, he talks about Bollywood's clichéd love stories but then makes another himself. Maybe he could learn doing parodies while giving tribute to Bollywood from Farah Khan as she did in Om Shanti Om. Speaking of Farah Khan, she was terribly missed during the dance on the title track. The song was perfect, the kind that makes you want to tap your feet as soon as it is played but justice wasn't done to its choreography at all! Or maybe it's just that pappu (really) can't dance!

I Hate Luv Storys also teaches that at times one needs to let go and have fun in life and that perfect does not always mean happy! It teaches that Mr. Right will not necessarily bring happiness to your life and at times happiness and fun is with Mr. Wrong. [I so hope mum's not reading this].

Despite the lack of a strong story, the crowd at the cinema cheered and clapped at a number of scenes. There's no denying that the target audience of teens and young adults will surely enjoy it.

– Hafsah Sarfraz

*YUCK
**WHATEVER
***GOOD
****SUPER
*****AWESOME