Meri Pyaari Bindu (2017) Review!!!

Synopsis – A successful writer Abhimanyu Roy, stuck with writers block, returns to his roots to write an old-fashioned love story.

My Take – It took me a while to get around into watching this YRF production, which despite some very innovative and interesting trailers never exactly had the required hype around it to garner the required opening numbers, plus mixed reviews on the 1st day of the release never helps. Alas, a week after its release this film by director Akshay Roy (marking his debut) has somehow managed to recover its budget, thanks to some neat overseas audience who somehow still believe in the YRF brand, and yet considered a financial failure, nevertheless on a lazy afternoon, with nothing else to do, it’s no harm to check out a rom com with the very under rated Ayushmann Khurrana in the lead right? Well, I guess I was wrong. Sure, the film has its heart at the right place, no doubts on that, but, in terms of soul, it’s nothing but a miss. In my opinion, rom coms are supposed to be endearing films that bring a lump in your throat, but this film is far from it. Here, director Akshay Roy delivers a film on love & longing, but is unable to make you feel the pain or the joy of its bruising leading-man, resulting in a film that only works in parts. Even though director Akshay Roy and his writers stay more or less faithful to the premise of a young man reflecting on his one true love through a series of flashbacks to their time together, the film seems like a halfhearted attempt to pull off the daring treatment on a much beloved English language classic. Yes, the writing and the sequences are highly inspired by the genius 500 Day of Summer, which even with its weird flashback structure somehow worked, mainly as the characters and their personal developments were given more attention over their personal age appropriate looks & design, resulting in an unsuccessful attempt at replicating the inventive, charming nature of that film. But the good part is in case you are expecting the film to take you down the same kind of emotional scalding on the age old Friendzone sub-genre, over provided by films like Karan Johar’s Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, I am glad to say that this one stays away from it, mainly as our characters rebound from romantic disappointment within a few scenes in an attempt to stay faithful to our lead’s constructed and overly designed reality. Another fact that this film proves, is that our good old retro songs can liven up even the most lackluster of stories. If you shed a little tear here or smiled softly there, remember it’s all the magic of these timeless numbers, and not the wafer-thin plot.

The story follows Abhimanyu Roy (Ayushmann Khurrana), a successful author of a series of Indian B horror novels, who due to a writer’s block returns to his home in Kolkata to finish his first attempt at a love story based on him & his neighbor Bindu (Parineeti Chopra), a quirky, carefree and live-in-the moment type of a girl. The discovery of a long-forgotten mix tape uncorks every memory associated with her, starting from an inseparable childhood friendship, since she moved in next door, to excellent college time to their initial relationship and finally separation. Since they were kids, Abhi aka Bubla has always been an assistant to Bindu’s menace, mainly due to his ever-growing fondness of her over the years, yet never acknowledges it to her it mainly as Bindu is always been known to be unstable, whether it’s her education or a relationship, she never aims to reach the finish point, and Abhi fears that maybe she will be willing to relinquish his presence in her life if tries to be more than her best friend. Over the years, Bindu and Abhi seem to go on different paths altogether, with Bindu aspiring to be a successful singer, while Abhi moving into a regular job. Yet, despite being continents away and with different partners, Abhi and Bindu always find a way to get back to each other, and when they finally decide to turn their friendship into a relationship, things begin on sweet note but due to certain events quickly turn sour, resulting in them parting way again, maybe for the final time. The film does begin well & the sequences involving Abhimanyu aka Bubla’s Eccentric Bengali Family, are a joy to watch & even when the story goes back in the past, the interactions between Bubla & Bindu offer charm that is until till the interval followed by the curse of the substandard second half kicks in. The script, which shows so much promise in the first half, goes hopelessly askew in the second, which seems so long that we can barely believe it’s just an hour long. Needless drama and melodrama, silly comedy and ‘real’ situations abound—all for nothing as the culmination is so vacuous. The second-hour simply doesn’t connect, as the narrative takes a dip, the already slim storyline just thins. It feels like director Akshay Roy doesn’t know where to take his characters, even the culmination, is overlong & might make you restless. What begins as a sweet friendship-turned-into-love story, turns into an overlong story about people who just aren’t sure about life or themselves! Generally, with such stories, you await the point of breakdown, it’s built up nicely – on the back of disappointment, frustration, a stark and honest look in the mirror by one the them. As Abhi continues to tap away at his typewriter, bashing out page after page of his latest work, as the title of the film, you do understand that at some level this narration is Abhi’s rose tinted memory of Bindu, his muse and the mix tape serves as a catalyst for catharsis, sounds charming, and it could well have been. Mixtape and montages make Ayushmaan and Parineeti look wonderful together, they make us believe they belong together, they fit like pieces of jigsaw puzzle, they have the effortless energy of knowing each other inside out and then there is the brimming uneasy sexual tension and the Bong connect, especially Abhi’s adorable carom playing brethren is spot on. There’s no faulting Chopra or Khurrana for effort but somehow you never buy into their romance or passion. And this is in part owing to the absence of any scenes of honest, deep, thoughtful conversation and shared experiences. Plus, director Roy and the writers never allow Bindu to develop into anything beyond a pretty woman with an average voice, & it’s just weird to see when Bindu fails profession wise, only the loyal Abhimanyu is surprised. In a telling conversation, Abhimanyu tells Bindu that he dreams of a life together where they will be married and have two children – clearly, like the filmmakers, he hasn’t understood Bindu at all. When Bindu, who is grappling with a career misfire, looks at him in horror, the movie has a brief chance to redeem itself and rescue Bindu from the gossamer mists of Abhimanyu’s idyll. The moment passes, and the movie trundles on. At one point during their relationship the pair decides to create a mix-tape of old Hindi film songs that has meant something in their lives.

It’s an interesting idea but it isn’t seen through to the end, and becomes merely an excuse to pepper the soundtrack with classic tunes. The film is more surefooted in the portions that are set in Kolkata. We get some charming scenes with Abhi and his hilarious Bengali family, to whom he is simply their ‘Bubla’. There are moments and sequences in the film that are moving and funny and quietly heartbreaking, but those are few in an overlong film that never quite finds its groove. Major developments like Bindu’s reconciliation with her father are wrapped up in one throwaway scene. The ending is also especially odd, I weirdly love dark endings, but here it’s way too much of a stretch given the film’s tone and the glibness with which it treats its characters. I didn’t even see why Abhi thinks he’s meant to be with Bindu, the film presents her almost exclusively as his creation, seen from his point of view, but this would have worked had he seen a goddess where we see a self-absorbed, demanding woman. But she’s the same through his eyes as well, and it’s hard to fathom the attraction. Abhi is such a puppy dog that he comes off as spineless, but I suppose veering off into his ego issues, for instance, would have made the movie more “serious.” It’s in the final act of the film where it decides to get all intentions and emotions right, but it’s too late. Though the movie at a high level tries to bring audience close to reality, the narration is hardly effective resulting in zero empathy. Honestly, Akshay Roy’s direction is decent, but the writing pulls the efforts down. Without a doubt, he has the talent, but it needs to be backed with a better script next time. The only thing which is right here is the nostalgia created by smartly weaving in gems which still hold up till date. Classic Hindi film tunes and Sachin-Jigar’s soulful tunes keep the movie ticking, including the moment when the song that inspired the title is recreated. Performance wise, Ayushmann Khurrana is extremely likable & keeps the film going. One feels bad for Ayushmann, the man is sincere and manages to look adorable while playing a bland single-tone character. He may be the most underrated, underutilized comic actor working today. Just watch him sell his proposal to Bindu, quailing at the prospect of rejection, and yet determined to present a blasé face. Just watch him in the dumb charades scene, where he makes horniness the most charming thing on the planet. Abhi’s yearning for Bindu isn’t half as moving as the fact that this actor just can’t catch a break. Coming to Parineeti Chopra, who is back on the scene after a three-year gap, following 2014 damp squibs like Daawat-e-Ishq and Kill Dil, looks gorgeous but the emphasis on her making her look a certain way breaks the slice-of-life illusion that this film aspires for. Even in the flashbacks, she seems to have emerged from the pages of a fashion magazine. But performance wise, well she seems to be still playing the character of her break out role in Ishaqzaade (2012), she has a knack for acting, but needs to get out of the YRF brand and take on more challenging roles. Aparajita Auddy and Rajatabha Dutta are superb as Abhimanyu’s parents. On the whole, ‘Meri Pyaari Bindu’ is only partly appealing, mainly due to its nostalgia factor & Ayushmann‘s sincere performance.