Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani - Movie Reviewed

Cast

Directed by Ayaan Mukherjee

Ranbir Kapoor as Bunny

Deepikda Padukone as Naina

Kalki Koechli as Aditi

Aditya Roy as Avi

Music & Background Score by Pritam

Lyrics by Amitabh Bhattacharya

Overview:

"Mai udnaa chaahta hoon....

Mai daudna chaahta hoon...

Girna bhi chaahta hoon...

Bass....Rukna nahi chaahta"

That's pretty much the best summary of the movie - The theme that underlies the entire plot and drives the movie from start to finish. As was the case with Ayaan Mukherjee's last movie, this movie too does not boast or even attempt at telling a brand new or a unique story. The premise is simple, but its really the philosophical focus that makes the movie worth your time.

Characters:

Many non-human aspects play important characters in this movie - Manali (truly Manali or Gulmarg....doesnt matter), Udaipur, Friendship, Attitude. Having said that, lets move on to the human characters.

Farrukh Sheikh as Bunny's Father - A short role, maybe just a little more than ten dialogues, nevertheless a great role played by this veteran. Eventhough this is what fathers do...understand and encourage, yet, in this case, you will see why it is such a tough role to play.

Aditya Roy as Avi...a friend who is sooo in luv with his friendship and yet is overburdened by his bit of bad "luck" in life. A great performance, although the second half seems to have tired him and his facial expressions and body language tend to get repetitive. 

Kalki as Aditi...a brilliant performance...my mistake....ONCE AGAIN....a brilliant performance by this multi-talented actress! Even the transformation of character from pre-interval to how it becomes post-interval is superbly portrayed by her. You empathize with her, you luv her and then you feel proud of her maturity. 

Deepika as Naina....the nerd and the over-protected girl. Typical transformation of a caterpillar to a butterfly and typical Deepika style! Her expressions of embarassment, of being awe-struck, of being fascinated yet perhaps a little taken aback, all beautifully depicted. The only let down for me was that I get the feeling that Deepika is not experimenting, from Love Aaj Kal to YJHD...her choice of characters needs bit more variety for a more substantial assessment of her talent. 

Ranbir as Bunny....no words. As stated in one of my previous reviews and perhaps by every film critic out there....he is truly his only competition! He makes you believe in what he says, makes you want to have the same dreams that he has and makes you feel exactly those emotions that Bunny feels! Supreme talent...Supreme!

Music:

Pritam...man...what is this guy upto! A brilliant soundtrack invigorated with the right kind of energy and reflecting the mood of the situation perfectly! Be it Balam Pichkari or Badtameez Dil or Kabira....each bringing out the relevant mood and yet great compositions even if heard in isolation of the movie's storyline. Amitabh Bhatacharya...another talent...be it poetry for Ilahi and Kabira or craziness such as "Pal mein phudina dekha, naak ka nagina dekha"....he proves he can write it all!

Pritam's background score is also perfect...the splashes of "oooh..." and "aaaah..." from Ilahi and the saxophone from Badtameez dil....blended into the otherwise energetic background score is wonderful! Again...all about bringing out the right kind of energy and he does a fab job at doing that. 

Experience:

This movie may belong to Ranbir or to Deepika or to any of the other great performances, but actually this movie truly belongs to Ayaan Mujherjee! Taking a simple story, blending it with a great script, fantastic dialogues and deft execution, Ayaan manages to engage his audience completely in this...otherwise predictable...love story. The underlying theme of following your dreams and living life to the fullest is vividly brought out....although maybe a little too emphatic at times. With perhaps a better edited second half, this movie would have found no room for criticism. 

"Beet ta to waqt hai...

Par kharch to hum hote hain...!

With that thought...I would like to make a special mention about the ending...I think the climax of this movie is one of the best that I have seen in a long time! I bet you will love it too!

Been-O-Pinion: 
I rate it 3.5 out of 5...This movie may not be a classic....may not be a real example of meaningful cinema...but this movie sure as hell teaches you one thing... "You can't be old and wise, if you were never young and crazy"! Go for it!