Aaja Nachle - Komm, tanz mit mir

Upon release, Anil Mehta's Aaja Nachle, which was widely promoted as Madhuri Dixit's comeback vehicle, failed miserably. I watched it now for the first time, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It is such a nice film - colourful, musical, beautiful. This it the story of Diya, a trained dancer who, many years ago ran away from her town with an American man she fell in love with and moved to New York. Now Diya is a professional dancer-choreographer, and a divorcée with one kid. In spite of having promised to never return to India, she hurriedly flies back when learns that her trainer is on his deathbed. She is late, as he has already passed away, but he leaves a message for her as his last wish, to save an old theatre named Ajanta (where she used to dance) from getting ruined and turned into a shopping mall. The story follows Diya's firm decision and later efforts to revive the Ajanta theatre in a town where she is widely infamous. Her plan is to set a new play named "Laila Majnu". The problem is that people in the town dislike her, and only a good response to it can change the theatre's fate.

Aaja Nachle is essentially a musical, nothing very serious, nothing to be taken seriously, and nothing that will provide you with new lessons in life. What it definitely does provide is entertainment, and there it scores. It is not a great movie, but it has a great sense of fun and it flows well. The song numbers are appropriately incorporated into the film, and in this one they are presented mostly as realistic situations in accordance with the story. The film has many subplots, many of which I think were effectively presented, particularly the one involving the character of Mohan Sharma, Diya's past fiancée who was abandoned as she ran away. Several sequences are extremely funny. My favourite is when different girls, most of whom know nothing about dance, audition for Diya's play. Director Anil Mehta is an accomplished cinematographer and he uses his skills to the max in his first directorial effort. Choreography by Vaibhavi Merchant, which is obviously very important, is very well done. The music directors duo Salim-Sulaiman compose a nice soundtrack without which the film would.

Aaja Nachle rests on the able shoulders of the wonderful Madhuri Dixit, who is as charming, natural and charismatic as ever. Clearly, her absence from movies has dimmed absolutely nothing about her, neither her acting prowess nor her ever-so commanding screen presence. Dixit is according to me one of the most beautiful women in the world, and here, her youthful, juvenile beauty is replaced by a more mature and ripe look which is equally appealing. Her eyes speak volumes, her expressions and gestures remain refined and forceful, and her smile... oh this gorgeous smile, it is as amazing and mesmerising as ever. Diya's persona is actually the one that made Dixit the star she is, the star who at some point could give any hero or heroine a run for their money. She is a strong woman who oozes charisma and dares to live life on her terms. The film doesn't give Dixit many opportunities, but she delivers. She is feisty yet gracious, fiery yet elegant, and she is always vivacious and graceful. And what can one say about her dance? Nothing except it is astonishing.

The supporting cast includes many great actors, most of whom are not given that much scope, some of whom getting really small parts, but all are good. Konkona Sen Sharma is awesome. She is simply hilarious as the aggressive, unrefined Anokhi who is madly in love and will do anything to get the man she wants, including dance like an idiot. Towards the end she looks very pretty and it is overall a very good performance. Kunal Kapoor as Imran Pathan is very fine in what can be termed as his own version of the angry young man. Nothing great, but despite playing an overly hostile and hot-tempered guy he's quite a likable fellow. Ranvir Shorey steals the show in a small role that is surely the best-written of all, and he is excellent. Akshaye Khanna in an extended guest appearance is good as he is in most of his films. Divya Dutta is very good in a tiny role, Irrfan Khan is criminally wasted in the even tinier role of her husband. Vinay Pathak is wonderful as "the boring husband". Sushmita Mukherjee is funny as his wife, while Raghubir Yadav and Jugal Hansraj provide good support.

Among the songs, I really liked the title track which is catchy and Madhuri's dance for it elevates it further. My favorite song, however, is the melodious "Ishq Hua". The film's best sequence is when the "Laila Majnu" play finally takes place. It is just beautiful, spectacular, and is clearly well-invested and wonderfully executed and performed. The ending is expectedly sugarcoated, but who cares? It seems like some people just cannot appreciate anything that is not dramatic. This film is generally a lighthearted musical, that's how it's treated - it is good Hindi film entertainment, and a time-pass movie, in the most positive sense of the word. Another complaint was that Madhuri got a rather bland role which didn't do justice to her talent. So, people had not seen her weeping copious tears for so long that they badly expected her to do it again? Can't an actor be good when he's playing a character with less tears and more smiles? Actually, the film is more of a tribute to Dixit's mastery of the art of dance, which was one of the main factors that made her so popular, and I say it's worth a watch.

This movie was absolutely terrific from every angle. I watched 2 times in one day which is something I rarely do, not to mention I've got a life to live. But this movie was truly fascinating. Starting from the "O Re Piya" song, I felt alive and enthusiast. Madhuri is at her best in this movie, her dancing and acting are simply amazing which proves that she had nothing to worry about in regards to the comeback. The "Lila Majnu" musical was captivating, my emotions fluctuated, I cried and laughed all the way through the scene, such a master piece I must add. The couple, Imran and Anokhi, was great; their acting was as good as it should be, you can easily get attached to them and understand what they are going through. To all who have criticized the movie, I must say, you just didn't understand its creativity – give your mind a chance to let loose. I advice all to watch it and I'm looking forward to what Madhuri has in stored for us – the fans!

A Yash Raj film scripted by Jaideep Sahni of Khosla Ka Ghosla, Bunty Aur babli and Chak DE fame, that was set to have the diva dance back into our hearts – in other words a must see film? I went with great expectations that were never met and was left with a sense of sadness for what Madhuri's comeback could have been but was not. This is the story of Ajanta, a dance/drama school with a supposedly revered teacher (?), a guy I do not know in a wandering dervish type avatar. He gathers young girls and trains them in the dancing parampara that must not die. What parampara you ask? Well – this parampara seems to be a cross between the dancing style of J Lo and Madhuri in Dil To Pagal Hai, a parampara that is very much alive and has nothing to do with our culture at all! The young Diya (Madz) runs off with a white photographer for National Geographia (sic!) and is disowned. She turns into an aerobics instructor as far as I can tell! Then the dervish dies and the small town has to be taught that parampara and Ajanta are more important than a mall on that site. And we all flock to the multiplex at the biggest mall to see this travesty! The older Diya has to return, lock horns with the Raja turned MLA (a totally wasted Akshaye Khanna), many goons (led by a bemused Kunal Kapoor), her old flame (Ranvir Shorey), her old friend (Divya Dutta) now married to her arch nemesis (a non-acting Irrfan Khan), and has to find a suitable Laila (an overacting Konkona Sen) for staging Laila Majnu Ki Daastaan on the stage of Ajanta.

What works in this film is so meager – Madhuri has a flat role with no nuances, and the bravura kathak dancer is made to tap dance! I do not think a worse role could have been written for this actress who left her mark on the 90s and then shot back to notice as Chandramukhi in Devdas. But to her credit, she is the one who manages to make the film somewhat engaging. The music is decent in parts but better outside the film. Ranvir Shorey does a good job as the jilted lover, and Divya Dutta plays her role well.

What does not work is so much – it kept me checking my watch so I could get a coffee in the intermission, and then wait for this film to end. Konkona, Irrfan, Akshaye have terrible roles with no depth whatsoever, and then do not do anything with what they do get to work with. Raghubir Yadav is okay but the guru belongs in a school for madaris! The sets are so fake and film city. The final play staged is too opulent and filmy for a small town. Do we really need to see Laila in a diaphanous white gown sleeping on a round bed shown from above? What this film needed was (a) a decent script, this was completely lacking – what a disappointing effort by Mr. Sahni (b) a decent director – this one had no clue (c) a realistic setting like that of Bunty aur Babli to make it all seem a bit real (d) someone at YRF to get a clue about what culture really means – it is not about BW dancing or tap dancing or aerobics/bollyrobics, how about some real culture for a change? But no worries – YRF will soon have to get a clue or sink; except CDI they have produced nothing but tripe in recent memory. I hope Adi Chopra wakes up before he throws away the legacy of the pere.

But the final word has to be about Madz – she still has IT, the smile, the style, the looks, the acting/dancing ability – hope she make better choices in the future.

Okay, now the eagerly anticipated Madhuri Dixit musical is finally out, I too would like to say a few things about this film. Not that I hated the film completely, but some parts of it really got me into pondering – why don't they just let us give a break and give something really sensible, something you would want to talk about for the next eight months. Not like okay you watch this film, enjoy, come out of the theatre and completely forget about it. Yashraj films who was bragging early this year about "2007-the year to be" has left some silly movies down the lane and their latest installment "Aaja Nachle" happens to follow the great legacy of Dhoom2, Tara Rum Pum, Jhoom Barabar.. and Laaga Chunari Mein… Indeed, the theory of quality being inversely proportional to quantity greatly applies here. Aaja Nachle, is, sadly a disappointment. But you have Madhuri making a comeback after so many years, a "perfect" production house that thinks it'll never get it wrong, a fine craftsman like Anil Mehta – wait, I must tell you he's got the cameraman Mohanan to shoot the scenes beautifully, but himself as a director – a big no no.

Aaja Nachle is simply a bunch of faults and flaws. Starting right from the first sequence, we get into thinking "Why don't they leave the Americans alone?" It seems Yashraj does not need actors but American extras and even at rarest occasions when you don't need them, they'll always have space to squeeze in a few. Then the music teacher gets some horrendous costumes to wear, records his farewell video (God, tell them 2007 minus 11 is 1996 and technology, fashion and everything else was already far more advanced then than shown!) and passes out. Then Dia gets into this quest to get the city together, and does some old school jhataks. (Okay, those expensive sets can be considered as "cinematic liberty" to quote critic Taran Adarsh but someone please tell me when did she get the theatre renovated and get all extra dancers when no one in the town was willing to cooperate?) Anything that's good is of course cinematography, sets and costumes. (Remember the good qualities of Om Shanti Om were almost exactly the same things.) Konkana and Kunal Kapoor doing some nice job there but the one to steal the show is of course the supporting cast. (What did you think I'd say Madhuri Dixit? No!) Madhuri's come back does not impress me. Sincerely, she's still the same old Madhuri and lot of water has flown since she left. Our tastes have changed and we are used to watching other actresses doing far more natural acting than she does in the movie. Irfan Khan is invisible in his short role. Akshaye Khanna's character does not convince me. I love the supporting cast which always happens to be the strongest factor in a Jaideep Sahani screenplay – be it Khosla ka Ghosla or Chak De India. I'd really look forward to Jaideep Sahni writing another supporting cast-driven movie than Anil Mehta be allowed to direct again. Music is so-so. The only songs to have impress me are "Show me your Jalwa" and "Dance with me." Technically, there are several plot holes and consistencies but you'd bypass a lot of them considering it be mere "cinematic liberty," but no former superstar can save your show when your screenplay is leaking and got holes all over it. The scene where Nazma confesses to Dia could have been far better and thrilling if Divya Dutta would have been written to enter the scene with a bang. The conclusion is predictable but Jaideep has forgotten to close some plots he opened. What happened to the other lady who was replaced by Nazma? What about the deal between Chaudury sahib and Irfan Khan's character? And why does not Dia teach her daughter to speak Hindi when she is so much in love with her cultures and traditions? Some bad screen writing done there but the rest of the movie makes up for those blunders.

This movie would not get repeat audiences. At least I'm not going to watch it again. Not even in DVD. It does not get high scores from me. Well 6/10 should do fine. That's all I'd accommodate for a good visual treat.

If the makers had the audacity to think merely the USP "Comeback of Madhuri Dixit" would alone suffice to lure the audience to the box office window, then sadly the thought is as relic as dinosaur. Gone are the days the loyalties of the audience rested with stars, it's the age where content rules the roost.

Chopra's previous outing on similar lines "Dil Toh Paagal Hain" was hugely successful owing to the ~soul~ which permeated in every scene of the movie and precisely this is missing in "Aaja Nachle". Jaideep Sahni – sleepwalking eh?

Madhuri "Nene" Dixit:: I am sure she was shocked to find that Bollywood has moved by leaps and bounds during her sabbatical. And yes, her charm is visible only in flickers. BTW – what is the logic of her being divorced? Why can't it just let be?

Akshaye:: No great shakes, dons his usual a la De Nero smirks! BTW - Yashraj should stop this "suspense element" stroke, not always please!

Raghuvir Yadav, Uttara Baokar, Irfan Khan, Konkana Sen, Ranvir Shorey, Vinay Pathak, Darshan Jariwala:: Managed to get a foothold into Yashraj camp, but in terms of capacity utilisation - nought.

Others performances were okay.

Even music and choreography disappoint.

Anil Mehta – if your desire to hold the directorial reigns is satiated, stick to your core competencies.

Aditya Chopra:: The verdict must have been revelation/ disappointment that audience doesn't share you fascination on similar level. Madhubala reincarnate, ne-ne!