Debutante director Shauna Gautam brings Dharma Productions’ latest offering on Netflix titled Nadaaniyan. The film also marks the acting debut of Saif Ali Khan and Amrita Singh’s son Ibrahim Ali Khan, who pairs up with Khushi Kapoor in her third outing. Also starring Suniel Shetty, Mahima Chaudhry, Jugal Hansraj, and Dia Mirza in supporting roles, Riva Razdan Kapoor’s story finds screenplay and dialogues penned by Ishita Moitra and Jehan Handa. Does this seemingly able team manage to deliver a watch worthy romantic comedy? Let’s find out.
Story:
When rich and privileged Pia Jai Singh’s (Khushi) equally privileged (and shallow) childhood friends Rhea (Apoorva Makhija) and Sahira (Aaliyah Qureishi) turn against her due to a misunderstanding created on their school’s bonfire night, she conjures up a lie to be forgiven by them and accepted once again in their social group. Now, to make her lie seem true, she hires a (seemingly) middle-class but meritorious, scholarship holder new student Arjun Mehta (Ibrahim) to pretend to be her boyfriend. So far, so good. Things take an unexpected turn when Pia and Arjun begin to develop real feelings for each other while they pretend to be dating. There’s also a little bit of patriarchy and family drama thrown in the mix (because, why not?) with the rich, separated parents of Pia (Suniel and Mahima) in contrast to the happy-go-lucky, overprotective parents of Arjun (Jugal and Dia). Will the protagonists finally acknowledge their true feelings while dealing with the hurdles thrown their way, and get the elusive ‘happily ever after’?
Review:
At the outset, we’d like to state that we’re always up for a good, heartfelt, cutesy (or even pookie) rom-com. After all, we’re the ones who’ve grown up on romantic films like Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayegne (1995), Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), Mohabbatein (2000), and so many others. We’re also all for fluff content pieces, the likes of Call Me Bae (2024) that may be unapologetically vain but are intended to provide light-hearted, harmless fun at the expense of a spoilt, privileged, elite protagonist – provided a decent storyline, and that the actors convincingly deliver – something that Ananya Panday (who’d often been dismissed as another ‘Nepo kid’ with questionable acting chops) did with elan in the Amazon Prime Video series. Director Shauna Gautam and actor Ibrahim Ali Khan’s debut film Nadaaniyan, unfortunately fails to deliver on both fronts. It neither has a half-decent, even slightly surprising story, nor does it boast impressive performances from the protagonists which also include Khushi Kapoor.
The story barely offers anything new, especially if you’ve watched some of the popular K-dramas or films like The Perfect Date (2019), that deal with a similar plot. Most of the twists and turns in Nadaaniyan are quite predictable and the way the screenplay unfolds really tests your patience, what with some annoying school kids doing and saying annoying things in a lingo that comes across as “wannabe” at best. The dialogues by Ishita Moitra and Jehan Handa attempt to be cheeky and clever and they manage to hit the mark at times. But those moments are far and few. Sample a random guest at a birthday party referring to Arjun as “royalty” – a quite in-your-face nod to Ibrahim’s Nawabi lineage, courtesy of the Pataudi khandaan or Arjun’s father saying, “Tu mera carbon copy hai (you are exactly like me)” – almost echoing the sentiments of netizens on several paparazzi videos that unanimously brand Ibrahim as a “carbon copy” of his father IRL Saif Ali Khan. There are some cheeky nods to a couple of iconic rom-coms of the 90s – Ms Braganza (Archana Puran Singh) appears as Mrs Braganza-Malhotra (IYKYK) while one of the scenes with the lead pair attempts to recreate, rather badly, Shah Rukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit’s iconic “Aur paas” scene in Dil Toh Pagal Hai (1997). Moments like these may bring a smile to your face in an otherwise bland narrative that tries to play safe while staying in its comfort zone.
For a moment we would have been okay with the comfort zone as well, had there been even a bare minimum effort by Khushi and Ibrahim to deliver in their respective roles. In her third outing, Khushi tries too hard to match her overly emphasized and enunciated dialogue delivery with her expressive eyes but fails miserably. There are times when even her hand movements seem awkward and forced as she tries to move them in sync with the words coming out of her mouth. Watch the scene where Pia tells Arjun that even though his parents are intelligent, he seems to be lacking the trait – you’ll know what we’re talking about. At several places it seems like she’s reading her lines from the script behind the camera, paying attention to every single word as if in a poetry recitation or speech competition in school.
Ibrahim, on the other hand, gets a proper hero-like introduction sequence, which may remind some of Sidharth Malhotra’s introduction in his debut film Student of the Year (2012). However, you soon realise that, unlike Sidharth in SOTY, Ibrahim is no kukkad kamaal da, especially when it comes to his acting skills. Ibrahim looks fab, sure! But sadly, good looks, good looks, and good looks (see what we did there?) don’t necessarily translate into passable acting abilities on screen. You barely feel anything seeing him angry, or sad, or in tears. Ibrahim definitely has a long way to go in order to be considered even mediocre at best, when it comes to his mettle as an actor. The other actors posing as students that surround the lead pair are not better either. It’s astonishing how every actor from the young cast just ends up being a cardboard, stock character putting up surface-level, staged performances.
While we wonder what made Suniel Shetty give a nod to be a part of this film, we did enjoy his suave presence on screen. Mahima Chaudhry gets one scene to shine where she’s in a heartfelt and mature conversation with Khushi’s Pia and she does not disappoint. Dia Mirza is sweet as a helicopter mother who knows no boundaries when it comes to her son, and Jugal Hansraj brings a smile to your face with his effortless act as Arjun’s father. A sprightly Archana Puran Singh as Mrs Braganza-Malhotra is in her element. It is these seasoned actors who try to do the heavy-lifting when the lead pair who’s supposed to anchor the film, fails so miserably, hiding behind the gloss and sheen of the airbrushed frames.
Amitabh Bhattacharya does a decent job with the lyrics of the songs. Sachin-Jigar’s music is a breath of fresh air with Ishq Mein and Galatfehmi being the stand-out tracks. Anuj Samtani’s cinematography is too polished with most of the frames being in soft focus in an effort that appears too staged, with numerous filters, to be perfect. Every single frame in the film seems airbrushed. Full marks to Anaita Shroff Adajania though, for serving quite a few impressive lewks with the costumes once again after Call Me Bae. The editing by Vaishnavi Bhate and Sidhant Seth appears a bit amateur with random jump cuts on reaction shots even while the person mouthing the dialogue isn’t quite done with their lines. How can there be a reaction when the emotion that warrants it hasn’t been conveyed yet? Even basic aspects like these have also not been taken care of while packaging this soft launch-pad of a film.
Verdict:
We were able to sit through Nadaaniyan in the hope that it may have something worth the while with a young, fresh pair onscreen. However, just because we managed to endure it, doesn’t mean you have to as well. To borrow a line from the film, “I guess what I’m trying to say, rather badly,” is that if you’re in the mood for a rom-com, consider a re-run of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai or The Perfect Date instead.
Nadaaniyan
Watch On: Netflix
Director: Shauna Gautam
Writers: Riva Razdan Kapoor, Ishita Moitra, Jehan Handa
Cast: Ibrahim Ali Khan, Khushi Kapoor, Suniel Shetty, Jugal Hansraj, Dia Mirza, Mahima Chaudhry, Archana Puran Singh
Rating: 1.5 stars
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