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Love Aaj Kal – movie review

For the young and romantic at heart

  


Love Aaj Kal, movie review

It is the same director who gave us Jab We Met, who has this time has developed a complex but comprehensive screenplay and extracted sensitive performances from Saif and Deepika in the form of Love Aaj Kal.

The film Love Aaj Kal deals with love story with different situations of 2 different eras which are Love aaj -2009 and Life kal -1965. Love Aaj Kal is not one of those ordinary love stories that talks of love and heartache. The director takes up the two stories, set in different eras, run them parallel, and they have a similar end.

Love Aaj
London, San Francisco, Delhi – 2009.
Jai (Saif Ali Khan) and Meera (Deepika Padukone) is a modern-day couple in London. They are very happy together but do not believe in tying each other down. So when life pulls them in different directions, they decide to go with the flow. They decide to go separate ways as Jai thinks that long distance relationships wont work. He is of the opinion “These Heer-Ranjha, Romeo-Juliet type janam janam ka saath type couples exist only in story books … In real life, we have to be practical.”

Love Kal
Delhi, Calcutta – 1965.
Veer Singh (Rishi Kapoor) is struck by a thunderbolt when he sees Harleen (Giselle Monteiro) for the first time. Soon after, he stands under a tree and swears that “is janam mein aur har janam mein… yehi meri votti banegi – Harleen Kaur.” He travels a thousand kilometers by train to stand under her balcony only to have a glimpse of her face. And yet not speak a word with her.

Love Aaj Kal
Veer does not understand how Jai can treat matters of the heart without passion, like a financial transaction. Jai does not understand how Veer Singh could have been so naive and silly about Harleen in the days of his youth. But as both stories unfold, we realize that the process of relationship might be different in different eras, but the experience of being in love remains the same.

Initially it takes time to grasp the plot, since the past and present run concurrently. If one isn’t attentive, chances are that you’d lose the plot especially as Saif enacts dual roles in the film and the 2 different love stories running on similar strands. This almost creates confusion as he plays his part as also the part of young Rishi Kapoor.

So there is the frolic and despair of modern living, the liberation and confusion. And there is the past – the times of innocence and compulsion. And there is distance, and the fondness that increases with distance. Gaps widen between two people, but bridges keep growing too.

Love Aaj Kal shows Saif as the young Rishi Kapoor, in sepia tone scenes. As the film progresses, it grows on the viewer. The second half is the soul of the film. Right from the time Deepika decides to marry, till the last reunion, the film touches an emotional high.

Other highlight of this film Love Aaj Kal – are some beautiful songs like ‘Twist’ , then the melodious ‘Chor Bazaari’ number and the ‘Yeh Dooriyan’ which have been brilliantly picturised by N. Natarajan Subramaniam.

Saif Ali Khan doesn’t need any comments on his acting, while the girl in her third film – Deepika has come out with her career-best performance. Rishi Kapoor, Rahul Khanna and the surprise presence of the graceful Neetu Singh towards the end are a treat to watch.

Cast of Love Aaj Kal:
Saif Ali Khan – Jai Vardhan Singh
Deepika Padukone – Meera
Giselle Monteiro – Harleen Kaur (introducing)
Rishi Kapoor – Veer
Rahul Khanna – Meera’s boss
Neetu Singh – Veer’s wife
Vir Das – Shonty
Raj Zutshi – Harleen’s father

Credits & Crew of Love Aaj Kal:
Banner – Eros Entertainment, Illuminati Films
Producers – Saif Ali Khan, Dinesh Vijan
Director – Imtiaz Ali
Executive Producer / Co-Producer – Sunil A. Lulla
Lyrics – Irshad Kamil
Music Director – Pritam Chakraborty
Background Music – Salim Merchant, Sulaiman Merchant
Cinematography – N Natarajan Subramaniam
Choreography – Ashley Lobo, Bosco Martis, Caesar Gonsalves, Saroj Khan
Art – Teddy Maurya
Editor – Aarti Bajaj
Costumes – Dolly Ahluwalia, Anahita Shroff Adajania
Singers – Neeraj Shridhar, Master Saleem, Sunidhi Chauhan, Mohit Chauhan, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, K K
Love Aaj Kal, movie review