Kabhi alvida na kehna - A love hate list

Today I watched “Kabhi alvida na kehna” which is another one of Karan Johar’s lavishly created movies. I had hated it immensely the first time when I had seen it two years back.

This time around I guess I was really paying a lot of attention ‘cause I happened to notice that somewhere in the middle of this messy story, there are some very meaningful lines like these-

• If you don’t go searching for love, you won’t find it.
• What kind of love are you searching for; the kind that exists in good books and bad films?
• Sometimes marriage takes the place of love and then there is no room for love left
• You are nothing but a wafadaar jamadaar and so on….

KJo wanted to make a movie on extra marital affairs but somehow he forgot to flesh out the main characters. The end result being that the audience liked the other couple (Abhishek and Preity) more than Rani and Shahrukh which did not bode well for the movie.

Rani’s character is pretty warped up which explains why she liked Dev(Shahrukh) who is nothing but a big pain (in the **). Preity does not get into her element till the closing of the film when her character realizes the truth after which she takes her hubby to task and how. Abhishek was just a prop (why did he sign this movie?) while Shahrukh got all the best dialogues (which were few). King Khan as usual went overboard and hammed all over the place which should have been prevented.

Now a list of my top love-hate reasons for KANK-
• I love the song ‘Mitwa’ and its beat and the way the singer has sung it makes the song very special for me. I loved the feelings of happiness and enjoyment that the two central characters are shown to be having in the Mitwa song. It was almost as if their inner happy self had found its way outside.

• I loved the New York background and beautiful locations used throughout the movie. I fell in love with each of the locations that Kjo has taken us to and I thank him for that. I hope KJo writes a post on his blog as to why he loves New York so much.

• I loved the color blue for Rani as the outfits in that color made her look like a dream. Rani looks a vision in all the sarees she has worn which suit her way more than any western outfit. BTW the dress designer for the movie did a very good job as everyone looks their best throughout the flick.

• I hated the fact that the movie was neither here nor there. At times the actors themselves don’t look much convinced about their characters and the dialogues but are doing it nonetheless.

• I hate that there were no dialogues that tickle you something on the lines of ‘Kal ho na ho’ which was a serious movie peppered with very humorous dialogues-why couldn’t we have had something like that in KANK?

• I loved the small things that Karan tried to show-chiefly the fact that you could have the best looking guy/gal as your husband/wife but the marriage will suck(if there is no chemistry) and no one will know that except the people involved.

• I loved Amitabh’s dialogue at the dinner table when he sees through Shahrukh’s character. Also the time when he asks for a drink at the ballet scene when he sees the foursome trade barbs at their messed up lives.

• I loved the way Abhishek screams at Rani after discovering her infidelity. I mean if he hadn’t done that I wouldn’t have believed his good-goody character any more and boy was I fed up of his pati-parmeshwar act.

• I loved Preity’s reaction when her philandering husband confesses to her about his affair. She slaps him and asks him to leave which was like wow-a breath of fresh air to see a modern women reacting the way she should and quite appropriately.

• I love the underlying theme of the movie that if you don’t love someone, don’t be stuck in that just for the relation’s sake. Go on and liberate yourself and your partner.

‘Kabhi alvida na kehna’ means don’t say Good bye and I have to quote Richard Bach here because I think his lines make plenty of sense in this reference-
Dont be dismayed at good-byes. A farewell is necessary before you can
meet again. And meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for
those who are friends.