then you're a sucker just like me. This film was made in 2004! 2004 people! And yet it employed the most severely clichéd stereotypes, prototypes and tired old tricks in the history of Bollywood. You know what? I want to know how films like this get made because obviously, some people are still trapped in bygone eras most other people would rather forget about.
Anywho, the storyline in the movie deals with two people (whom we are introduced to in the beginning of the film) who appear to each other in their dreams (Hence the title: Kaun Hai Jo Sapno Mein Aaya? Who is this who comes to me in my dreams) as lovers but do not exist in reality---yet. And in case you haven't already guessed that this is gonna to be a sappy melodramatic Bollywood fluffy episode, then they have 10 songs (Yes 10 song & dance numbers) to prove it to you. Moving right along, our heroine Mahek (Richa Pallod) arrives in London (even though the film was shot on location in Wales) via her uncle Dr. Verma (played by Anupam Kher in a very wisely chosen special appearance role). But upon arrival, her uncle has to leave for an urgent engagement overseas and leaves her in the care of his close friends. Mahek's arrival in this household is a blessing because her very traditional Indian presence makes a deep impact on all the members of the family who have taken the term 'NRI' to the extreme and forgotten about their roots (all of them except for the grandmother of course). It is also in this household that Mahek finds out Kaun Hai Jo Sapno Mein Aaya? by way of Sunny (Rakesh Bapat) one of the sons in the family with whom she falls in love. But of course there has to be a damper on their relationship and that comes to them by way of Mahek's secret identity as well as the nature of her visit to the UK.
Okay, now on to some of my pet peeves, as seen in the film:
1. Mahek, the angel in Pink. Yes, she wears pink as if that was the only colour available to her from the wardrobe department.
2. Mahek arrives in London (which is actually somewhere in Wales and not the actual London) from India and goes sight-seeing on the very same day. Not only that, she also has the time to go dancing after that and is not the least bit jet-lagged.
3. The spoof of Shah Rukh Khan during the fake radio interview was right on! But clearly uncalled for. I'm sure the actor did not find that funny. But chances are he like most wise people did not see the film.
4. Of all the 10 songs, only one was truly memorable and that's 'Mera Sona Saajan' one of the reasons the film earned at least one star and not zero from me.
5. The conflicting cultures scenes were a bit overblown.
6. There was a nice scene in which the actors and actresses sing in their own voices (another reason why the movie earned one more star from me) but what was the point of this then? If they can sing, then why didn't they just sing all the songs.
7. Okay, while I know that most Hindus do not make use of graveyards for dead loved ones, what was the purpose of Mahek & Sunny disrespecting the graves of other people by going for a walk and doing what not atop of them? The director should have cut this scene out but I'm sure he did not give a damn.
The third reason and last reason why the movie earned one more star from me is the fact that the final scenes were shot in the hospital where I was born. :-) But that's no excuse to sit through 3 hours of hopeless and overdone fluff!
Anywho, the storyline in the movie deals with two people (whom we are introduced to in the beginning of the film) who appear to each other in their dreams (Hence the title: Kaun Hai Jo Sapno Mein Aaya? Who is this who comes to me in my dreams) as lovers but do not exist in reality---yet. And in case you haven't already guessed that this is gonna to be a sappy melodramatic Bollywood fluffy episode, then they have 10 songs (Yes 10 song & dance numbers) to prove it to you. Moving right along, our heroine Mahek (Richa Pallod) arrives in London (even though the film was shot on location in Wales) via her uncle Dr. Verma (played by Anupam Kher in a very wisely chosen special appearance role). But upon arrival, her uncle has to leave for an urgent engagement overseas and leaves her in the care of his close friends. Mahek's arrival in this household is a blessing because her very traditional Indian presence makes a deep impact on all the members of the family who have taken the term 'NRI' to the extreme and forgotten about their roots (all of them except for the grandmother of course). It is also in this household that Mahek finds out Kaun Hai Jo Sapno Mein Aaya? by way of Sunny (Rakesh Bapat) one of the sons in the family with whom she falls in love. But of course there has to be a damper on their relationship and that comes to them by way of Mahek's secret identity as well as the nature of her visit to the UK.
Okay, now on to some of my pet peeves, as seen in the film:
1. Mahek, the angel in Pink. Yes, she wears pink as if that was the only colour available to her from the wardrobe department.
2. Mahek arrives in London (which is actually somewhere in Wales and not the actual London) from India and goes sight-seeing on the very same day. Not only that, she also has the time to go dancing after that and is not the least bit jet-lagged.
3. The spoof of Shah Rukh Khan during the fake radio interview was right on! But clearly uncalled for. I'm sure the actor did not find that funny. But chances are he like most wise people did not see the film.
4. Of all the 10 songs, only one was truly memorable and that's 'Mera Sona Saajan' one of the reasons the film earned at least one star and not zero from me.
5. The conflicting cultures scenes were a bit overblown.
6. There was a nice scene in which the actors and actresses sing in their own voices (another reason why the movie earned one more star from me) but what was the point of this then? If they can sing, then why didn't they just sing all the songs.
7. Okay, while I know that most Hindus do not make use of graveyards for dead loved ones, what was the purpose of Mahek & Sunny disrespecting the graves of other people by going for a walk and doing what not atop of them? The director should have cut this scene out but I'm sure he did not give a damn.
The third reason and last reason why the movie earned one more star from me is the fact that the final scenes were shot in the hospital where I was born. :-) But that's no excuse to sit through 3 hours of hopeless and overdone fluff!