Love song in the snow-capped mountains. Check. Boy in sweater and muffler. Check. Girl in bright gowns, all to deliberately create photogenic blobs of colour on the white expanse. Check. The snow falling in tune with the tears every few minutes as a plaintive soundtrack plays on. Check. A heartbreak leads to alcohol consumption and violins in the background. Check... From the beginning to the sudden twist and reveal towards the end and then on to a protracted and cop out of a climax Tum Bin 2 has a “seen that many a times” feel. A Sangam (1964) meets Dushman (1972) of sorts. In fact a pot pourri of many more old-fashioned films, including Sinha’s own Tum Bin (2001). To underline the connect he even makes the heroine of Tum Bin , Sandali Sinha, do a walk-on role here.
Taranjeet Kaur (Neha Sharma) is a woman caught between two men—Amar (Aashim Gulati) and Shekhar (Aditya Seal). She is in a good spot, something many will envy. If Amar has a picturesque house with a stunning lake view, somewhere in Scotland; Shekhar is a rich young man who has made 62 million dollars with an app he developed. If you think Taran is lucky to have to choose between rosogulla and gulab jamun when it comes to men, please halt in your tracks. She has very little choice; it’s the men who talk of their haq (right) on her. Sharma keeps crying fetchingly. Gulati is the Siddharth Malhotra lookalike with a Dev Anand bouffant (which stays intact even after months of being bedridden). Seal has a baby face but is severely muscled when it comes to biceps and spouts Paul Coelho-like gyaan. Sample: “Life is like summer vacation”. Why? “Because it comes to an end!” Or some such spiel.
One rather extended and interesting sequence dwells on Pakistan and its people in a fun way. It speaks of culture as against religion, about complicating what are simple human issues. But, before you can say brave, it all boils down to dealing with Pakistani Hindus than Muslims, you see.
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Taranjeet’s two Kaur sisters had potential to be quite a riot, but they get hemmed in. The pick of the picture is Kanwaljit Singh, ever so dignified as the gentle patriarch. And then there are Jagjit Singh and Rekha Bhardwaj singing ‘Teri Fariyaad’. But then you are much better off listening to the two on your own music system than on the big screen.
Rating: one star
Director: Anubhav Sinha
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Starring: Neha Sharma, Aashim Gulati, Aditya Seal
Run time: 127 mins