Anjaana Anjaani (2010)

Live each day like it’s your last. Enjoy life to the max. Live with a no regret policy. Yeah yeah yeah, we have all heard this time and again and that’s precisely what Anjaana Anjaani is all about. Directed by Siddharth Anand, starring Priyanka Chopra as Kiara and Ranbir Kapoor as Akash in the lead, Anjaana Anjaani is a story about two strangers who meet on a bridge, wanting to commit suicide.  Of course, they end up with unsuccessful suicide attempts and decide to die together. After a couple of failed attempts, they realize there’s probably something that they have left undone. That’s when they mark the New Year’s Eve for another suicide attempt and decide to spend the remaining 20 days doing things they have always wanted to do but couldn’t. What ensues is a 20-day road trip that takes Kiara and Akash over scenic locales throughout America.

If this rings a bell and reminds you of The Bucket List, let me just clear it out right away, Anjaana Anjaani is not an adaptation or a copy of that movie. However, there’s no denying the fact that the concept is clichéd and has been done over and over again. It’s extremely predictable. Ten minutes into the movie and you can already predict the end but what’s interesting is the way they take the story to the end. You still want to watch it despite the fact that Anjaana Anjaani doesn’t have an anjaana plot.

The reason you want to watch it is that it’s a simple, light hearted love story which is predictable but different in its own special way. Ranbir is the finest actor of this generation and his performance in Anjaana Anjaani proves that yet again. With every new release, Ranbir raises the bar higher and looks charming and absolutely stunning!

Priyanka has performed her role with great ease and looks natural. She has perfect comic timing in the comic scenes. She is emotional in the touching ones and rowdy during the drunken scenes. But even though she looks young, preppy and fashionable in the Manish Malhotra outfits, I believe she could have looked much hotter. Somehow she didn’t have the wow factor like she did in Dostana.

Priyanka and Ranbir are superb and they complement each other. It’s the first time that these two actors have come together and their chemistry is fantastic.

The movie takes a while to settle in the plot as Akash and Kiara’s bond blossoms but after a while you fail to understand why they still want to commit suicide. And just when their lame attempts to commit suicide start becoming annoying, they make you laugh like there’s no tomorrow. Watch out for the swimming adventure scene between Akash and Kiara. It is hilarious to say the least! Also, the scene where Akash is forced to pole dance at a gay club is uproarious and left the crowd in stitches. Kudos to Ranbir for pulling it all off so well without being called gay!

The initial scenes of the movie show a very carefree, fun loving, happy go lucky Kiara, which makes the audience question why she was on that bridge? But oh I forgot, the audience is not supposed to ask questions. Nevertheless, another question that kept popping in my mind was how Kiara and Akash could afford trips to Vegas and around America considering one of them was bankrupt and the other was jobless. Oh well, I guess everything is possible in Bollywood.

Another flaw apart from these unanswered questions in Anjaana Anjaani is that the entire movie focuses on only two characters basically. I am not forgetting the fact that Zayed Khan has a cameo but his performance is completely forgettable. Also, there are parts where the movie seems stretched. That’s when you wonder why Akash and Kiara didn’t jump off the bridge in the first place. But it’s not all that annoying. The locales shown are beautiful and make you feel stunned while seated in your chair gazing at the screen. Every frame is amazing. You can’t help but appreciate the cinematography. The music by Vishal Shekhar is foot tapping and easy on the ears. There’s a kind of song for everyone and the background score complements the movie to give a great effect.

All in all, Anjaana Anjaani is a predictable story with great performances, nice music, superb cinematography and light moments that bring a smile to your face. It makes you want to stop and think about what you really want to do in life. Oh and it teaches you the same lesson all over again, live each day like it’s your last but this time it convinces you a whole lot more – Hafsah Sarfraz

Rating :- 3 out of 5

Cast and Production Credits

Year – 2010, Genre – Drama/Romance, Country – India, Language – Hindi, Producer – Sajid Nadiadwala, Director – Siddharth Raj Anand, Music Director – Vishal Dadlani, Shekhar Ravjiani, Cast - Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Zayed Khan, Anupam Kher

Ranbir Kapoor

It was so overwhelming,” says Ranbir Kapoor after seeing his mother, Neetu Kapoor, act in a film after 30 years. The actor, who saw Do Dooni Chaar, that also features his dad, Rishi Kapoor, says that he’s seen his mom’s films before too, but seeing her on screen after three decades with his father was a different experience altogether. “I felt proud to be their son,” he smiles.

Wasn’t he the one who convinced Neetu to take on the role of Mrs Duggal in director Habib Faisal’s debut film? “Mom was nervous but I reminded her of the fact that she’d been a top star and those who had loved her in the good old days would be happy to see her back. I also assured her that just like you never forget cycling once you learn it, you don’t forget acting,” he informs.

The actor, whose Anjaana Anjaani opened on October 1, is currently working on his next movie, Imtiaz Ali’s Rock Star. He’s actually learning to strum a guitar. “I love music and  my biggest disappointment was that I couldn’t play any instrument. So for Rock Star, I’m learning how to play a guitar because it’s easier to handle while singing,” he says. “It’s not possible to play drums and sing but you can easily manage that with a guitar.” – Hiren Kotwani

Priyanka Chopra and Ranbir Kapoor in Anjaana Anjaani (2010)

Bollywood’s chocolate boy Ranbir Kapoor, who was dating actress Deepika Padukone till last year, said he is quite immature as far as love is concerned. Ranbir, who was promoting his forthcoming film Anjaana Anjaani at an event in Mumbai to launch a new radio station Oye 104.8FM, said: “I’m very immature and inexperienced as far as love is concerned.”

“But if I do more films like Anjaana Anjaani I will understand love better. But till now I don’t think I have understood the emotion,” he added.

Talking in context of his film, Ranbir further added that as far as he is concerned, he has not fallen in love with a stranger till now unlike his character in the film that is slated to release on Friday.

“Till now I’ve never fallen in love with a stranger. Till now whenever I’ve fallen for someone, it has always been someone, whom I knew for a period of time. Lets see what happens in future,” said the 27-year-old actor.

“Anjaana Anjaani” is directed by Siddharth Anand and produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and Sharan Kapoor.

The romantic comedy that also stars Priyanka Chopra and Zayed Khan is about two strangers who meet on a bridge while they are about to commit suicide and then decide to wait for 20 more days and fulfil their last wishes before dying.

“It is a simple love story where the two characters realise what love and responsibility is and get to know each other and themselves too,” said Ranbir.

The actor, who was earlier seen in Anand’s Bachna Ae Hasseno, was also all praise for the director, with whom he is collaborating for the second time.

“Sidharth loves films and he has a very distinct style of filmmaking. He has a stamp of his own. It’s not like he is influenced. He is very hard working. Then he loves food so you will get very good food on the sets, which is also a great thing,” the actor said.