REVIEW: Jaane Tu...Ya Jaane Na Aamir launches his nephew with a film that makes you smile By Buzz18 . Buzz18 Jul 03, 2008 Comments [0] E-mail
It has been a while since I sat through a film that made me smile, and at times even break into a hearty laughter. Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na, did both. The film, by Aamir Khan Productions and directed by Abbas Tyrewala, is about love. It has no great production values, no great packaging, no fantastic storyline to speak of. And surprisingly, no unforgettable lines by Tyrewala, who has given us plenty in Munnabhai, Maqbool and Main Hoon Na. The good thing is A R Rahman's music reflects the soul of the film, youthful, easy, breezy. MUSIC REVIEW: Jaane Tu... Jaane Tu, in fact, is a very barebones film that you know the story of: Young people growing up, growing apart and growing in love. So we have Jai (Imran Khan) and Aditi (Genelia D’Souza), who love each other, but lack the insight and maturity to accept it. And in the end – of course, after twists and turns and many song and dance sequences with friends -- they find the courage to face up to the truth. The characters Jaane Tu is populated by parents who are 'cool' and play scrabbles, parents who are bitter and on the verge of breakup, single, hardworking mothers, corrupt, comical cops, difficult brothers, and friends who just hang around and hang around and gang around strumming guitars and getting drunk on cola. But the clichés – you can find thousands, from Dil Chahta Hai to Kuch Kuch Hota Hai -- are saved by the humour. Like the scene where Jai is invited by Aditi’s parents to discuss their engagement, or the one with the antics of the two brothers Bhaloo and Baghera (hilarious comic cameos by 'swashbuckling' Arbaaz and Sohail Khan), or the piece de resistance, the delightful relationship between Jai's mother Savitri (played by Ratna Pathak Shah) and the talking portrait of her husband (Naseeruddin Shah), which leaves you in splits! The characters of course are comically exaggerated and yet believable. Friends here do not zip around in Mercs or live in Manhattan-esque apartments. They take cabs and walk the streets of Mumbai, borrow money to pay for cover charges at nightclubs, saunter around in their pyjamas, and, at times, refuse to buy a cell phone until they get a job (okay so the last bit is a little unbelievable). The humour Tyrewala has said in an interview that after Aamir Khan took over as the producer, he wanted certain parts of the film to be funnier. Thank god for that, because if you strip the film of its humour, you strip it of its soul. (Also Read: The exclusive Abbas Tyrewala interview) The film blends the slapstick with the subtle well and Abbas Tyrewala's debut directorial venture scores on that count. The strained relationship between Aditi and her brother is a case in point. If one moment you have them at loggerheads, screaming, kicking and fighting each other, you also have the brother leading his sister to his ‘forbidden’ studio-room for the very first time, just to give her some honest brotherly advice. There are also plenty of spoofs and not-so-subtle digs at masala films. Performances Imran Khan exudes the kind of boyish charm that is perhaps part genetics and part training. His mannerisms and body language will remind you of his uncle, but he manages to stamp his own personality on you. He is good looking in a boy band-sort of way and has a smile that shows off a set of perfect teeth. And there's the shirt-less scene to remind you that he has macho potential. Guess his acting will get better with time. Genelia is good in parts, looks pretty as a petal and when her large eyes well up with tears, your heart does go out to her. However at times you wish she delivered better. Jayant Kriplani and Anooradha Patel as Aditi's parents are neat, Kitu Gidwani and Rajat Kapoor have a few seconds in the film, while the ‘gang’ features actors whose acting skills range from the ridiculous to the impressive. We also like the performance by Prateik Babbar (the late Smita Patil's son) as Aditi's talented and complex brother. READ: Jaane Tu's 'surprise' element What does not work What could possibly be a drawback is the dated look. The characters sport styles that are so last-year. The wait for a producer to resuscitate the project seems to show up here. The pace too is inconsistent, and you have to be patient in the first 20 minutes, at times gritting your teeth through patchy editing, very amateurish acting, to get to the cream. But the film grows on you, thanks mainly to some sit-com moments, and some sensitive ones. Verdict: The bottom line is, Jaane Tu... is a nice, feel-good film – minus the chiffons and New York skyscrapers -- that does not aspire to be a great work of art. Thank god for that! Rating: Three stars
