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By Taran
Adarsh, October 26, 2007 - 10:32 IST
 Love stories are beaten to death. The genre has been
rehashed, visited and re-visited again and again and
again. So much so that all love stories look, seem and
sound alike. But JAB WE MET, helmed by Imtiaz Ali,
takes a fresh look at love stories.
Frankly, the story isn't new. It has traces of the
Abhishek - Ash starrer DHAAI AKSHAR PREM KE [2000;
which, in turn, was inspired by A WALK IN THE CLOUDS]
and Govinda - Urmila starrer KUNWARA [2000; which, in
turn, was a remake of a Telugu film BHAVANAGARU
BHAGUNNARA], but director Imtiaz Ali's execution of
the subject takes it to another level altogether.
Also, for any love story to work wonders, it ought to
have the germs to make the viewer jump with joy and
participate in the goings-on. And the principal
characters here -- Shahid and Kareena -- are so real,
so natural, so believable and so winsome that the
viewer gets absorbed into their world as minutes pass
by.
To sum up, JAB WE MET is as refreshing as an ice-cold
watermelon juice in scorching heat. Imtiaz Ali's
expert storytelling coupled with Shahid and Kareena's
sparkling performances make this film a must-watch!
Aditya [Shahid Kapur], an industrialist, is
heartbroken as the girl he loves is getting married to
someone else. Unable to muster up the courage to
return home, he drifts out of the gathering and
aimlessly boards a train, bounding away into the
night.
As destiny would have it, he meets Geet [Kareena
Kapoor] -- a beautiful but annoyingly talkative girl
who is leaving Mumbai to go her hometown -- Bhatinda.
Later, she has plans of eloping with her boyfriend [Tarun
Arora].
 Geet irritates Aditya to the point of getting him to
leave the train. As she tries to get him back on the
train, she ends up missing it and the two find
themselves stranded on a desolate station with no
luggage or money.
Begins the idyllic journey through the exuberant North
Indian heartland in which this odd couple make their
way through buses and taxis and camel-carts to reach
her house in Punjab.
On arrival, Geet's family mistakes the two for lovers.
Before this misconception can be cleared, Geet escapes
to her boyfriend in Manali. Aditya leaves with her,
confirming the suspicion that they are lovers. In
Manali, Aditya feels empowered to return to Mumbai and
resurrect his ailing business.
Life takes a positive turn and Aditya begins to do
well. One day, Geet's family, who think that she is
with him, confronts Aditya. He is shocked to learn
that Geet has not returned home. He takes it upon
himself to find her.
He finally tracks her down in a Himalayan town and
begins another journey to reach Bhatinda and flow into
the colors and conceptions of a loud and happy North
Indian family. How their separate journeys become one,
forms the remainder of the story.
Opposites attract -- that's the essence of this love
story. The journey of two individuals who cross each
other's path one night and develop a deep bond is
skilfully and convincingly depicted at the very
outset.
The highpoint of JAB WE MET is its story. Although the
story bears an uncanny resemblance to some films, it
never gives you the feeling of déjà vu. The sequence
of events in the first hour is akin to a roller
coaster ride. The journey that the couple undertake to
reach Bhatinda first and Manali later is mesmerizing.
 But the pace slackens in the second hour. Partly
because the goings-on get dramatic and serious. Also,
things seem to be stretched in this hour. The love
story takes its own sweet time to reach its
destination, when the fact remains that it could've
[and should've] reached the finale earlier.
Thankfully, the end is expertly executed and takes the
graph of the film higher.
Imtiaz Ali deserves brownie points for handling the
subject with such maturity. The fun-laden scenes are
truly funny and the emotional ones make you
moist-eyed. Striking the right balance between light
and heavy moments is akin to walking on a tight rope
and Imtiaz handles the two extremes with remarkable
ease. An accomplished storyteller undoubtedly!
Pritam proves his versatility yet again. 'Poochho Na
Poochho' and 'Tumse Hi' are seeped in melody, while 'Mauja
Mauja' and 'Nagada' are racy, foot-tapping and easy on
the lips. N. Nataraja Subramanian's cinematography
does justice to Imtiaz's vision. The indoor look as
well as the exteriors are dexterously captured by the
lensman. The writing [Imtiaz Ali] is almost foolproof.
Also, the ambience and setting in the Punjabi
household are excellent.
Both Shahid and Kareena vie for top honours. Shahid
delivers his career-best performance in JAB WE MET. He
goes for a complete transformation vis-à-vis his looks
and attire to look the character he has chosen to
portray and the understanding with which he enacts his
part is worthy of lavish praises.
 Kareena is in top form as well. JAB WE MET is a
turning point in her career [personally as well as
professionally]. Fantabulous -- that's the right word
to describe her work this time. The confidence with
which she handles the contrasting characterization
speaks volumes. This film should do for her what KUCH
KUCH HOTA HAI did for Kajol.
Pawan Malhotra is excellent as Kareena's uncle. His
diction as also the body language is perfect. Dara
Singh is good. Tarun Arora is awkward, but that gels
with his role.
On the whole, JAB WE MET is one of the finest
[romantic] films to come out of Bollywood in 2007. At
the box-office, it has the merits to work big time.
Strongly recommended… Go with your family!
Rating:- *
* * 1/2
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