Old School Bollywood

Film: Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani

Director: Ayan Mukerji

Ayan Mukerji returns with yet another Ranbir Kapoor starrer and the first thing you must know about this film is that it is 160 minutes long. If one can infer anything from the promotional songs that one has heard a million times before today, and from the duration that flashes on its censor certificate, it is that the film has Bollywood written all over it.

And one couldn't be more right. The story begins with Naina (Deepika) narrating the story of her life from 8 years ago when she left behind her structured life to try and enjoy her youth. The unimaginative philosophy, of young blood waiting to break the shackles of life, set itself free and conquer the world, then starts to take over the narrative. In more ways than one, this is Hindi cinema's indirect adaptation of How I Met Your Mother - it is a long firsthand account of the most productive years of your life, laden with emotions, friendships, good times and dreams.

What works, however, for Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (YJHD), is its screenplay. Ayan Mukerji's ability to contain the emotion of a scene within his frames comes to his rescue as the loose storyline begins to wander in god-knows-which direction. The romantic exchanges between Ranbir and Deepika are pretty off the rack, with a few sparks of indulging dialogues. The best scene, though, is played between Ranbir and Farooq Shaikh towards the end of the film. The flashback dialogue sequence between father and son is filled with emotion and leaves you with an unforgettable memory.

As mentioned earlier, the film has Bollywood written all over it. Nearly 3-hours in duration, YJHD leaves no stone unturned and squeezes every drop of emotion and spectacle from the story. The dance numbers keep you upbeat from time to time and the drama holds your hand as it oscillates - to make you cry, then make you laugh, then make you cry some more.

For Ranbir Kapoor, YJHD is yet another confirmatory test for his star status and Deepika, for the first time, doesn't depend on costumes, background music and glossy camera work to emote. For Aditya Roy Kapur, YJHD is the second straight film after Aashiqui 2 where he doesn't have to be sober for a single moment - a role he seems pretty comfortable with. Evelyn Sharma, who plays a supporting role, does her part well to take your mind off Kalki's disturbingly alien accent. And Kalki happily plays out her part in her new-found role as a chirpy-bubbly tom-boy.

After a long time, Dharma Productions has delivered a kind of film that is expected from the brand. It is a paisa-vasool entertainer for audience of all shapes and sizes. A perfect end to the summer and a good three hours spent at the movies. Go watch.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Published in DNA (Pune) on June 1, 2013