The Bhatts ' Mahesh, Mukesh and Co ' seem to have quite a problem on their hands. Copyright laws are stringent now, making it that much tougher to rip off foreign films. And with the bank of ideas running dry, there's little to go back to except their own past filmography. The lack of creativity at Vishesh Films ' their production house ' begins with the title itself. Any film with a horror element becomes part of the Raaz "franchise", any crime drama is Jannat, anything with murder becomes, you guessed it, Murder.(Although Murder 3 had no murder ' no one even died, in fact).
Aashiqui 2, as you may have figured out, has romance at its core. But the romantic angle in the film is no different from any stock track that was a staple in most '90s Hindi films (one of which was the original Aashiqui). Mohit Suri's version of Aashiqui is a relic that makes the mildly entertaining Rahul Roy-Anu Agarwal 1990 film look like it was light-years ahead of its time: the attention to detail is laughable, the acting is embarrassingly poor and Shagufta Rafique's screenplay will lead you to deep slumber.
Rafique borrows heavily from ' of all films ' Hrishikesh Mukherjee'sAbhimaan. Once-successful singing sensation Rahul Jaykar (Aditya Roy Kapur) discovers Arohi Shirke (Shraddha Kapoor) performing at a bar in Goa. Jaykar, an alcoholic, decides to turn Arohi into a star. In a song where both characters are shown at their respective houses in Mumbai ' Rahul's a pent house and Arohi's a chawl ' the scene shifts between Worli village and a high-rise against what suspiciously looks like the Cape Town skyline. From then on, the story unfolds in a manner rather predictable ' Arohi becomes a star, Rahul sinks deeper in depression, the two are in love but unable to help the other out. During this time, the scene constantly shifts between Mumbai and South Africa, even though the story's set in the same city. It's the kind of foolishness filmmakers seem to expect from the Hindi film-watching public, grossly underestimating (and losing out on) audiences in the process.
Whatever little chance the film had at redemption is washed away by the lead pair's acting inabilities. Aditya Roy Kapoor looks like a cross between young Sunny Deol (from his Betaab days), and a young Sanjay Dutt (from his Vidhaata days), the result understandably disturbing. Shraddha Kapoor's a looker, but that only manages to distract you from her main area of expertise ' acting ' initially. The supporting cast ranges from clueless (Shaad Randhawa) to overzealous (Mahesh Thakur). Suri, whose strength seems to lie in making watchable remakes of Korean thrillers, tries to pull off the kind of intense film his mentor Mahesh Bhatt excelled at during his younger days, but fails spectacularly.
What only barely saves Aashiqui 2 is its music ' not even in the same vicinity as Nadeem Shravan's score from the original ' but fairly hummable. The song "Tum hi ho" sticks in your head easily, but it plays in the background so often, it loses its charm eventually.
Come to think of it, Aashiqui 2 ' with its overdose of music ' should have ideally been called Sangeet, or Song. The Bhatts could have spun off Song 2, 3 and 4, based on the angst-ridden musician character. It's an opportunity lost. May be they could adopt an easier route: call the next film Vishesh Films 55, 56 and so on. 🤣🤣
Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin
