Aisha

Rating : 5/10
Release Date : 6th August, 2010
Time : 126 minutes
Director : Rajshree Ojha; Writer : Devika Bhagat (inspired by Jane Austen's 'Emma'); Music : Amit Trivedi
Starring : Sonam Kapoor, Abhay Deol, Ira Dubey, Amrita Puri, Cyrus Sahukar, Anooradha Patel, Yuri, Lisa Haydon, Arunodhan Singh, Anand Tiwari, MK Raina
Lets be clear that style is more important than substance in this film. Its almost a paid promo for Sonam and the brands she endorses.. L’Oreal / Dior / Elle / Louis Vuitton getting as much footage as some of the characters. What keeps it together are some good punch lines and very good performances from Abhay Deol (who basically carries the film on his shoulders), Ira Dubey (plays her part to perfection) and Amrita Puri (who puts heart into the girl from Bahadurgarh).



So Aisha (Sonam) is full of herself. She’s into match making, shopping, wedding planning, animal shelters, river rafting, partying…pretty much aimless and happy to spend Dad’s money as she zips around in her yellow VW Beetle. Her best friend is Pinky (Ira Dubey), also a bit of an airhead, happy to be Aisha’s partner in crime. Aisha now acquires a new project. She is determined to pair up Shefali (Amrita Puri, gawky, plaited girl from Bahadurgarh who continuously makes various faux pas’ and is desperate to get married) with one of their circle, Randhir Gambhir (Cyrus Sahukar, heir to a mithai shop empire, rich but not really with it and has a huge crush on Aisha). While Dad, masi etc watch indulgently, the only one who doesn’t really approve is Arjun (Abhay Deol, childhood friend, smart investment banker, expert polo player, great tango dancer, general cool guy). He wants Aisha to let things be. He doesn’t want her to turn Shefali into a Xerox copy of herself. He wants her to focus on better things / realize her potential. And Aisha doesn’t like being criticised…


Arjun’s girlfriend, Aarti (Lisa Haydon, svelte, sexy in a very Angelina Jolie-esque way) and Dhruv (Arunodhan Singh, Aisha’s masi’s stepson and a guy who thinks he’s cool vs actually being so) provide the other complications in this otherwise straightforward storyline.


They manage to hold it reasonably together till the first half but then it starts to fall apart. Key reason is that we never understand why the characters behave the way they do because character development is sacrificed at the altar of fast paced storytelling. And promoting Sonam, making sure she is always the centre of attention. And its all very predictable.

Sonam is not bad. She seems to embody the Barbie doll characteristics of Aisha, looks nice all dolled up and sulks / pouts to perfection. It’s the scenes where she needs to emote which seem to test her. But she's not bad, especially for this role. Some of the jokes are great, with Abhay having most of the punch lines, right from “mall ka rasta bhool gayi ?” to “I know nothing about girls but a lot about women”. The soundtrack is consistently peppy, some lovely songs (including a soft guitar number) and some scenes are designed to perfection, including the opening wedding, some of the art in the background and Abhay’s snazzy suits.



Love can be one of the most complicated emotions. But not if you watch Aisha. Pithy one liners, people who seem to find their soul mates at the drop of a hat and a central character who seems to be comfortably gainfully unemployed. And an ending that’s too pat. All part of a nice, girly, Lutyen's Delhi paradise.