Now, this is a movie that was begging to be skewered. There was much hype about the film what with it being directed by Imtiaz Ali of Jab We Met fame. Jab I saw this film though, I felt it was quite a let-down. That's not to say it didn't have some good bits...they were few and far in between, is all.
Let me start at the beginning...rather what I assume to be the beginning. The first five minutes whizzed past so fast you could be forgiven for thinking you were watching a trailer. Then ofcourse, it could just be that I was too thick to appreciate the plot. Saif (Jai) and Deepika (Meera) are on course to a break-up, I figured out...even before I knew they were together. However, instead breaking up the lame old way, they decide to celebrate it. A break up party is organized, ostensibly to show that they split up was mutual and so they can part on good terms. In true Bollywood style, that's when they realize how much they love each other though neither of them admits it. Enter, Rishi Kapoor, who catches Jai at this restaurant just after the break up. He recounts his tale of love to Jai, to express his views on the shallowness of love as professed by today's youth.
This sets the stage for a parallel storyline that progresses in a different timeline. It is Saif again who plays the role of a young Rishi Kapoor (Veer) complete with a turban and all. I felt it was a curious choice to cast Saif who nevertheless plays the part pretty well though he can't pull off an authentic Punjabi munda. His romantic interest is Harleen Kaur, a shy, demure punjabi kudi who is everything Veer is not. The story follows Veer's attempts to woo his love and the subtle, endearing romance that ensues. All the while though, there are only ishaaras and almost no talk. It was only after the movie that I discovered, why this part of the story was surprisingly devoid of dialogue...the lady was a Brazilian actress! You could easily be fooled into believing she is a typical Punjabi girl if no one told you otherwise.
To cut a long story short, Jai eventually realizes that his own love for Meera is not too different from what Veer describes. And hence the title...
The music for this film has been (ahem) composed by Pritam. I say composed as I don't yet know which part of the world these tunes were 'inspired' by. Don't get me wrong...he makes great music. Only, its not always entirely his own. There is a mix of both old and new in this movie with songs like Chor Bazaari (Neeraj Sridhar & Sunidhi Chauhan), Twist (Mostly Neeraj Sridhar and a motley group of singers) and Yeh Dooriyan (Mohit Chauhan). Neeraj Sridhar's voice is well suited to the kind of new age songs that he's given and the result is not too bad. Mohit Chauhan is always a pleasure to hear and he didn't disappoint this time either. As is the trend these days, to coerce spectators in to sitting down a little longer, you have the customary context-free song after the end. Ahun Ahun is a Punjabi folk like song with enough to keep everyone happy.
Coming to the actors, Saif was a bit disappointing in his main role as Jai. He sort of makes up for it with his portrayal of a young Veer. Deepika Padukone on the other hand manages to look pretty and does only that. There seemed to be absolutely no chemistry on-screen between Saif and Deepika somehow. In scenes when she's supposed to be talking to Saif, I couldn't help but think she was talking to the screen instead. Her dialogue delivery leaves a lot to be desired. Come to think of it, the dialogues themselves were quite absurd in some places. A case in point is when Meera's newly wedded husband discovers that she loves Jai the morning after their wedding. Meera insists she has to meet Jai and talk to him...her consolation to the poor soul is thus 'मैं तुमसे बाद में माफ़ी मांग लूंगी'!! Try as I might, I failed to understand the sentiment behind such a lame and insensitive statement. Rishi Kapoor as usual delivers a smooth performance as the present day Veer. This combination of him and Saif works quite well as it did in Hum Tum.
Love Aaj Kal is a movie you'll possibly like if you are a fan of either Saif or Deepika. If you like me, who's neither, you're likely to end up wishing you'd spent the money on a more worthwhile pursuit.
