What happens when a creative soul hits the writer’s block and gets into a relationship so that he can steal some of the experiences to complete his story? What if his story is about a thief? As the two storylines overlap, and the two thieves pilfer, some existential quandaries come into play.
Vikramjit Singh dwells on the idea but gets carried away by the style and the apparent profundity of the subject.
As the layers begin to come off, we realise Vikramjit is committing the same errors that his director in the film does.
But then, as one of the characters says in the film, you read the script and you know the man who has written it.
Karan Grewal (Arjun Rampal) describes his protagonist Roy (Ranbir Kapoor) as insane, brooding, stoic and arrogant. And Ayesha Aamir (Jacqueline), Karan’s 23rd girlfriend and an antithesis of what he stands for, feels the same about him. And we carry similar thoughts about Vikramjit as he over philosophises the conflict and generates a dark and brooding atmosphere around his good looking protagonists for effect to hide their limitations.
Like Karan, it seems the director literally keeps the thinking hat on all the time. And after a point it seems like he is flogging a dead horse. A little more of a relaxed approach, a little more ability to laugh at the inherent contradictions would have helped. It reminds one of Leena Yadav’s Shabd which was equally verbose yet vacuous.
Unlike Leena, Vikramjit has picked the right horses for this one-dimensional course. Arjun Rampal is expected to play up his debonair image and flaunt his natural understated swagger and he doesn’t disappoint.
In fact, Vikramjit has created a grey and urbane atmosphere that suits the Rampal kind of acting, which many find non-acting. It is the kind of setting where Jaqueline becomes expressive. She looks the part as the London-based director who is in love with meaningful cinema but falls in love with a director known for erecting tent poles.
In an extended cameo, Ranbir also tries to fit in to this wooden atmosphere and perhaps that’s why for the first time our eyes settle more on his sweaters, leather jackets and automobiles than his performance.
In fact, when he sings “Tu Hai Ki Nahin” towards the end, one wants to put the poser to him — is he there or not?
Bottomline : More style than substance, here the songs have more depth than the script.
