Imtiaz Ali’s Jab We Met not only enjoys cult status in Bollywood’s rom-com space, but the film also resurrected the flaky careers of the director and its main protagonists – Kareena Kapoor and Shahid Kapoor. At the time of structuring the movie, Imtiaz Ali was a little too unconfident about the story being too thin, the only person who felt confident about the film was Shahid. The insecurities of makers at the time were predominant over their beliefs of a successful movie and they were for sure not expecting the movie to be of such big a triumph. Talking about the chemistry, it wasn’t about the leads sharing an equation instead, it was the chemistry between the characters of the more essential story, which was sizzling.
All of us were enamoured by the characters in the film and their journeys. Where Geet (Kareena Kapoor Khan) goes from the talkative energetic girl to the heartbroken lonely teacher, Aditya (Shahid Kapoor) starts with no hope from life and goes on to live the perfect happy life. Their contrasting traits, especially the Geet in the first half has been an audience favourite ever since. Not just the wonderfully performed leads, all the nicely-etched supporting cast including the cheeky manager at Hotel Decent, the clueless boyfriend Anshuman, the grandfather played by Dara Singh or Geet’s crazy family add a lot of delight for the viewers. A crowd favourite has been the station master who advises Geet when she misses her train and luggage- he had one scene but those few dialogues were enough! Real-life characters and stellar performances were an asset for Jab We Met.
Shahid and Kareena have pulled their acts well with ease and style. And this time Kareena doesn’t overact at most parts of the movie while Shahid has matured into an outstanding actor and the couple are sure to steal your hearts away. Shahid Kapoor is extremely talented. His handsome look and dashing personality are coupled with his exceptional acting skills. He carries all sorts of emotions well with ample composure. Kareena Kapoor is an equal match. The always babbling lively girl role is a perfect match for her personality. For the first time, we thoroughly enjoyed her acting. This was the big break of her career and her best performance so far.
Director Imtiaz Ali displays the elegance in the narration which was amply visible in his debut venture Socha Na Tha. But here, he evolves further and incorporates masala in just the perfect measure. Essentially, the film belongs to Shahid and Kareena who pitch in memorable performances and lend a whole new meaning to the boy-meets-girl story. Add to this Pritam’s riveting music score with sizzling numbers like Mauja hi Mauja, juxtaposed against Mohit Chauhan’s soothing romantic ballad and you have a spunky new love story to moon over. Watch out for Shahid’s winning histrionics. Quite, quite mesmerising.
A story of this kind, with two strangers, missing trains, running away from homes, travel, separation and everything in between was unique and one of its kind for 2007. Moreover, it was not the usual story but it was a completely different journey that was shown. Adding to the great story, it had beautiful writing which was perhaps, the movie’s third lead star. Imtiaz Ali, who also wrote the screenplay, filled the running time with outstanding stuff. The feelings were relatable and the writing, fresh. It struck a chord with all types of audiences. Right from the swear words, Geet throws at Anshuman, to the applause-worthy one-liners ‘Mein Apni favourite hu’, ‘Doubt mat rakhna dil me’ and ‘Sikhni hu mein Bhatinda ki’ and so many of those, Imtiaz won our hearts with his screenplay.
Jab We Met is fun-filled, unique and a sweet love story. It would appeal to moviegoers of all ages. If there has to be one reason why Jab We Met looks like the way it does, it is the captain of the ship, Imtiaz Ali. Stepping in as the director and writer, every frame resonates Imtiaz Ali’s directorial magic. A director at heart, he has very ably defined his movie and characters and all the things that appear in the viewer’s sight. Today, his films are known for their characters and the journey they go through. Well, Jab We Met was quite the commencement of this identity. The man rules millions of hearts and how!
