Bachna Ae Haseeno

Rating : 4/10
Running Time : 180 Minutes
Release Date : 15th August ‘08
Director : Siddharth Anand ; Writer : Aditya Chopra ; Music : Vishal-Sekhar
Starring : Ranbir Kapoor, Bipasha Basu, Deepika Padukone, Minissha Lamba

Bachna Ae cinema dekhne waalon
Ek aur timepass film aa gaya
Itna sara hype hai
Itne sare heroine
Phir bhi film hai bakwas, bilkul third class – ae o !

This was an apology of a movie (pun intended). Its actually not that bad, but I couldn’t resist the ditty. Its in the 4-5 bracket as far as I’m concerned but two women I know feel it deserves a higher rating, and its not because they have a crush on Ranbir or his six packs (you can read what one felt here, though she gives more of the story away than I would like to).

Its about a heartbreaker who has his heartbroken and his subsequent actions. A guy who behaves like a weak, invertebrate scoundrel on two occasions and then suddenly decides to develop a spine and turn a new leaf.

Like the women it showcases, the movie is naïve and innocent at first, based in Switzerland, where Minissha and Ranbir meet and reenact Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge.
Then it becomes a bit sultry, a bit modern, a bit fast, set in Mumbai with Bipasha. And finally, like the most interesting character of all, Deepika, ultra modern, progressive, a true advocate of women’s lib, set in Sydney.

My issues are several. I didn’t feel any sympathy for the lead character, Ranbir, because of what he’s shown doing, the way he breaks the hearts of Minissha and Bipasha. He crossed the line and so for me ceased to be a ‘lovable’ rascal, like say a Saif in Hum Tum, but instead became someone who I began to dislike (the character, not Ranbir, more on him later). The three women are not properly developed – we catch a glimpse of what they’re about but not enough to really care for them. Deepika is the most interesting portrait, something different, while the other two are too stereotypical (cute Punjabi girl and sultry supermodel respectively). And the second half transformation of Ranbir is not fully explained – why he does what he does etc plus I found the whole thing implausible. And I thought the ending was too trite, too superfluous.

There are some good laughs – they use music from other Yash Raj films to good effect with the clip from Dhoom2 being used very effectively. The background SFX of a toilet flushing was used well initially but then became repetitive. Ranbir’s friend, Sachin (I think it was played by Hiten Paintal), was outstanding, with very nice lines (and T-shirts). And I laughed the loudest on Deepika’s no-nonsense reaction when Ranbir introduces himself to her.

Ranbir can dance (vs what I stated earlier in Saawariya), can look cute but has to do better when doing emotional scenes. And he has to do something about his hair. The women acted well – Minissha is a really fine actress and brings a touch of credibility to whatever she does, Deepika looks lovely and carries off a difficult character well, while Bipasha looks hot and later bothered with élan.

I wish they’d kept it funny in the second half rather than going for melodrama (I have an idea for how they could have done this). And it wasn’t even that great in the first half. My son complained in the intermission that it was ‘too romantic’ for him to watch and promptly fell asleep. I wish I’d done the same.