The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Many stars, no story

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jan 29, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Many stars, no story

Salaam-e-Ishq

Director: Nikhil Advani

Cast: John Abraham, Vidya Balan, Anil Kapoor, Juhi Chawla, Govinda, Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra...

THIS FILM comes with wonderful promises, each of them brimming with exciting possibilities. Director Nikhil Advani delivered an ace with his first film Kal Ho Na Ho a couple of years ago. Shanker-Ehsaan-Loy's music has caught the fancy of cinemagoers with the title track of Salaam-e-Ishq zooming up the charts.

All hype

Then there has been all the hype. For days it seemed the masses almost could not wait for what is essentially the first multi-starrer for a long time: Advani's fixation for stars is faintly reminiscent of Rajkumar Kohli's penchant for ensemble cast. However, a star does not make a film. Thank God. Cinema continues to be a canvas for exploration. And Advani fails the test. He is not able to weave a complex tale of six couples facing their own challenges to togetherness.

He takes a leaf out of Love Actually, and actually goes on to give it an Indian touch. So, he gives us Vidya Balan living with John Abraham in Mumbai, and Anil Kapoor doing the same in London with Juhi Chawla.

In between we have love-lorn Govinda waiting for a dream girl in Delhi, and Akshaye Khanna in and out of love with Ayesha Takia. Then we have the high-profile couple of Salman Khan and Priyanka Chopra. He is Rahul, a pseudo boyfriend for the wannabe top heroine item girl. Throw in Salman's brother Sohail having a romp with Isha Kopikar, and your main cast is complete.

Now for the story. Story, did one say! Well, Advani forgot all about that. Instead, he decided to play chess. So for one move of Queen Priyanka, he decided to have one-and-half of King Salman. The knights like Govinda and John get their few squares too, leaving the pawns like Ayesha and Isha with the leftovers.

There it goes...

However, in this delicate balancing act, it is the film that goes off-balance. The stop-start narration with frequent flashbacks and fast forward shots disorient all but the most persevering and patient of viewers.

Priyanka looks and acts faded, ditto for Juhi. Akshaye is monotonous. John, Vidya... all others are reduced to shadows. All but Govinda, now well and truly on the comeback trail.

He is reduced to a lone sailor trying to save a sinking ship. As a Delhi taxi driver with music for company and girls for dreams, he is brilliant. In fact with his boyish manners, he is quite sweet. So unlike the film. The way things pan out here it is more like bye, bye ishq!

Ziya Us Salam

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