'Dosti: Friends Forever' was a pleasant surprise to me. The performances were very strong and I loved the dynamics between the 2 lead characters, Raj (played by Akshay Kumar) and Karan (played by Bobby Deol). The portrayal of intimate friendship was very heartfelt and honest, and it was moving to watch. To me, the way these 2 actors portrayed this bond is the core of the film, and it carries the film.
This is a movie about choices, about identity, about how a friend can change your life and make you a better person, about relationships, about unselfish love, about life. This film tackles some very important issues in a real and honest way. It will make you think and will touch your heart.
The two lead actors were very generous with each other, especially Bobby Deol, and this must be applauded. It was not competitive with the actors constantly trying to upstage each other. This reminded me of the dynamics between Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan in 'Sholay'. In a way, some parts of 'Dosti' are a mini-homage to 'Sholay', which was a nice idea. There's a part where they're both on motorbikes singing a song with the words 'Yeh Dosti' in it. The homage is discreet and not an obvious 'copycat' attempt, which is nice and wise because although Bobby Deol is Dharmendra's son and Akshay has played Bachchan's son in movies like 'Waqt' and 'Ek Rishtaa', these 2 actors, although very good, have not attained the status of the older actors, who are now icons.
Akshay Kumar surprised me in this movie with a beautifully nuanced performance. He did incredibly well, as did Bobby Deol. The 2 of them deserve kudos for great work in this film. 2 stand-out scenes are where Bobby is railing at God; and when Akshay begs Juhi for a chance to attend his friend's wedding. At the climactic dance scene in the movie, Akshay seems to do a bit too much, but in retrospect, that's probably what was right for his character and the intensity of his position. Lovely acting, I was really impressed.
The rest of the cast is also very good, especially the 2 actors who play Bobby Deol's mother and father. The scene where Karan's father apologises is very touching. Very nice work by the 2 of them.
A couple of flaws: the 2 female leads, while adequate, did not work hard enough to portray the turmoil of their characters. Their performances ended up seeming a bit shallow. Kareena Kapoor was slightly better than the other lead actress (who seemed more concerned with dancing in skimpy outfits), but even Kareena lost steam by the end and failed at the crucial moment to truly depict her character's turmoil on screen. Akshay gave her chance but she didn't rise to meet it. In my opinion, both actresses could learn something from Juhi Chawla. In a small role as Aditi in this film, she leaves a solid emotional impact. Nice work by Juhi.
Another glaring flaw is that the beginning of the movie, with the 2 friends as kids (nice acting by the young ones, I must say) appears to take place in the present time. There is no 'aging' of the costumes and decor, and the 2 boys are even playing contemporary video games. 20 years later, nothing has changed. However, this and several other inconsistencies I might name are commonplace in Bollywood (with a few exceptions like 'Parineeta'), so they really don't affect one's enjoyment of the movie.
The music in the film is excellent, the direction is also very good and I really enjoyed the flashback technique employed by the director and the screenwriter. The 'flow' of the movie was beautiful, and it was very well paced and kept to a nice length.
There are parallels between 'Dosti' and films like 'Kal Ho Naa Ho' and 'Waqt'. I think Dosti is just as good, in fact better than either of these movies, and that's saying a lot, because 'Waqt', for example, was very good indeed.
To sum up, this really is a nice piece of work, the actors have done well and the film will definitely touch your heart if you let it. It actually made me cry!
