Take a serious condition like Alzheimer’s Disease. And make a mockery out of it. A mediocre mockery at that, with some pretentious sensitivity at the end. That’s Saiyaara, YRF’s latest presentation.
What work big-time for it, however, are the lead pair, Ahaan Pandey (Ananya’s cousin, who seems like a star-package, except for maybe a natural similarity to the hangdog persona and performances of Sanjay Dutt) and Aneet Padda. This comely girl, seemingly a cross between 1970s actor Ranjeeta and 1980s debutant Bhagyashree, has a histrionically more demanding role, a fixed expression on occasion, and, as of now, a slight deficiency of that mysterious ‘X’ factor, but in these days, that hardly matters. Her performance makes up fot these small lapses.
Their chemistry seems immaculate and they perform very well for debutant actors. But though the film seems to have been appreciated by some, these two actors are sadly saddled with a middling script that aims to be a romantic one, with director Mohit Suri’s usual fetish for the dark side of human lives. This time, it is an obsession with a villain that isn’t a human being but a medical disorder.
Both lead characters have a past, which is perfectly alright. Krish Kapoor (Ahaan Pandey) wants to be a star-musician. What is in his way? Egoistic music financiers, unmusical choice-makers and an alcoholic father (Varun Badola), with whom he has parted ways bitterly. And why is the father a drunkard? Because after his wife’s death he took to the bottle and even neglected his son, who thus is prone to bouts of rage.
Vaani Batra (Aneet Padda) is a poet-lyricist who is also into journalism, coming from an affectionate family (Rajesh Kumar and Geeta Agrawal, with Anngad Raj as her younger brother). Then why is she unhappy? Well, she has been ditched at the (registered marriage) altar by a cad named Mahesh Iyer (Shaan R. Grover) for better prospects, including a position abroad and a rich wife facilitating that.
Vaani has a trait of forgetfulness, but she does not forget this trauma. On a visit to a media house for a job, she stumbles on the road and drops her book of poems. Krish sees that and follows her in, as he too has an agenda there. Their acquaintance grows. Into love, as both slowly help each other get over their pasts.
Now why was Vaani carrying her book of poems to a place where she was going for employment to get over her grief? Not explained! And that too, as Krish has discovered many pages frenziedly torn off. Well, those songs had been written when Vaani was in love with Mahesh! But why is Vaani carting her traumatic past along when seeking employment?!!
Krish, inspired by Vaani, even makes peace with his father and puts him in a de-addiction center, which costs him the kind of money only Yash Raj Films can afford per month. For that, he needs to sell his songs, including his IP (Intellectual Property Rights) on them. Nobody wants to know why Vaani, who writes the songs (Yes! They have formed a team like Sachin-Jigar and Priya Saraiya, who is Jigar’s wife and a lyricist!) also has to forgo her IP!
But let that be. Also let the facts be that Krish even abandons a show or two either in anger or despair. And when Vaani has her second fainting attack aftrer being ditched, a series of tests are done on her and then comes the diagnosis: she is an exceptional (due to her age) case of Alzheimer’s.
On medical advice, her parents plan to send her to a relative for a stress-free stay in the mountains. But they no longer frown on her seeming suitor Krish (they don’t bother about his family or background either) and send her with him to Alibag, a sea resort a few hours from Mumbai instead.
It is not clear who owns (or funds!) the classy seaside villa where—Voila!—Krish even has a musical setup (that he can smash to smithereens in a rage later) and there is no helper or maid shown. This thus becomes an idyllic location for love and some classically Mohit Suri tracks (the conservative Hindi Film Music lover in me hesitates to call most of them “melodious songs”). Alzheimer’s, of course, makes convenient entries and exits, and there is even a scene where Mahesh (who has long returned to Vaani’s life, first as partner in the firm where she works, and now as a sponsor for Krish’s performance!) tries to make out with her.
To cut a (tawdry and corny) story short, Vaani suddenly vamooses as Krish’s fame grows to international levels. For over a year, her parents and Krish search for her in vain. And then she is spotted in the audience in a video of his performance and is so conveniently traced to an ashram in Manali in North India! Turns out that she deliberately did this to ensure Krish achieved his dream, and is still conveniently medically challenged. But she does not recognize Krish.
This addlepated story and script is laced with quite synthetic dialogues and a barrelful of plastic emotions that will only affect the so-inclined, viz. the impressionable minds who know nothing (from study or experience) of the medical issue from which Vaani suffers.
As mentioned above, the lead pair still manage to carry the film and that is to their eternal credit. There is little boredom despite all the puerile content, and the music is also a diversion for those who like fairly different and Mahesh Bhatt-style lyrics that adorn the director’s movies. To Mohit’s credit, the mixing makes the lyrics be heard clearly, but the general musical style sounds very ‘heard-that-repeatedly-before’, and the lyrically best song, the title-track, even has three composers. And mind you, they are separate individuals, not a Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy entity! The background score (John Stewart Eduri) is loud on occasion, just like Krish!
The supporting artistes have nothing much to do, and yet Geeta Agrawal as Vanni’s mother and KV as Krish’s friend scores.
Watch this film only if you relish new lead artistes with something to offer, otherwise, Sorry yaara, Saiyaara can hardly qualify among even decent movies on disabilities. And this week’s Tanvi—The Great itself proves the difference between sensitivity and substance about a human condition over this insensitive and vacuous vehicle on a malady.
Rating: **
Yash Raj Films’ Saiyaara Produced by; Aditya Chopra & Akshaye Widhani Directed by: Mohit Suri Written by: Sankalp Sadanah & Rohan Shankar Music: Mithoon, Sachet-Parampara, Rishabh Kant, Vishal Mishra & Tanishk Bagchi-Faheem Abdullah-Arslan Nizami Starring: Ahaan Panday, Aneet Padda, Varun Badola, Rajesh Kumar, Geeta Agrawal, Anngad Raj, KV, Shaad Randhawa, Sid Makkar, Shaan R. Grover & others
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