Shriram Iyengar
Mumbai, 24 Jun 2016 15:49 IST
Director Vivek Agnihotri makes a brave attempt at the genre of romance with his latest film, which, like many epic romantic legends, is doomed.
Film: Junooniyat (U)
Director: Vivek Agnihotri
Producer: Bhushan Kumar
Cast: Yami Gautam, Pulkit Samrat, Gulshan Devaiah, Hrishitaa Bhatt
Story: Vivek Agnihotri
Screenplay: Vivek Agnihotri, Priti Singh
Runtime: 2 hrs 35 minutes
Rating: 2/5
If there are three things that one takes away from Vivek Agnihotri's latest, Junooniyat, they are as follows.
1. If you hang around a person long enough, and annoy them badly enough, they might just fall in love with you.
2. Army officers at the border are quite well versed in multiple dance forms, including salsa, bhangra, hip hop and fusion ballet. They also have massive parties at their cantonments, which are lit up like discos.
3. The best way to melt the heart of your girl, and her angry parents, is a dance-off at her engagement reception.
The film is a stereotypical story of a self-confident army officer falling in love with a rebellious young woman. Except that there is no substantial reason for any attraction to exist between army captain Jehan Bakshi (Samrat) and Suhaani Kapoor (Yami) other than the latter's constant trespassing of army cantonments. If that isn't forced enough, her presence at every party he attends (or his presence, for that matter) definitely is. We should admit that we have never heard of or met an army captain who takes as many holidays and performs dances during drills, and is still not called in for a court martial.
Unlike what is shown in the film, it takes more than one single confrontation with your dad, and more than a misunderstanding, for love to break apart. It is in stark contrast to the title of the film, which means passion. Throughout the film, Samrat's character keeps talking about making his own destiny, yet the film never allows him a chance to break out. The love between the couple cools down as suddenly as it was sparked. The only reason is that he refuses to accept her conditions, and she refuses his.
Gulshan Devaiah, in too long a role to be called a guest appearance, plays the sad part of Suhaani's fiancé Yash who has to deal with the truth that his betrothed doesn't love him. It's a good thing his parents are rich enough to write off the expenses of the destination wedding they had organised. The dance-off by the army captain to confess his love doesn't help Yash's cause either. I would have given up the bride too, if it spared me another dance performance.
The film is replete with poetry written by the director himself, spoken in gravelly tones by Pulkit Samrat. In many ways, the scenes with poetry remind us of a very pale, amateurish imitation of Yash Chopra's Kabhi Kabhie (1976). Sadly, neither is Vivek Agnihotri a Sahir Ludhianvi nor is Pulkit Samrat an Amitabh Bachchan. At most, he is a decent decoy for Salman Khan, and shares his propensity for stuck-jaw expressions and cleavage display.
Yami Gautam, who made her debut in the smart Vicky Donor (2012), seems to have grown younger and more immature with her films. Her performance seems silly to attract anything other than pity for an actress who had shown potential.
There are enough songs and dances in the film to keep the mass audiences happy. The songs, though not of the highest quality, possess enough trippy beats to make it to late-night dance parties. However, there remains the case of the mysterious army cantonment at the border which has such a swanky dance floor, complete with disco lights and a jazz soprano. Whoever said soldiers live a harsh life!
Vivek Agnihotri's last film, Buddha In A Traffic Jam, had the tautness of script and courage one expects from an established filmmaker. Sadly, his latest venture pours cold water on the expectations. The film makes an attempt at understanding the complexities of young love, the disasters ego could cause in relationships, and the difficulty of pursuing it. The script seems stretched and the 2 hours 35 minutes seem totally unnecessary.
The film fails to convince the audience of its sincerity. The only saving grace is the beautiful visuals of nature. The scenes in the Himalayas offer some redemption, but not enough. The film's fatal flaw is that it lacks the one thing it advertises – passion aka Junooniyat.