A Potpourri of Vestiges Review
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By Murtaza Ali Khan
Half Girlfriend is a romantic drama film directed by Mohit
Suri who has earlier made films like Awarapan (2007), Raaz - The Mystery
Continues (2009), and Aashiqui 2 (2013). Half Girlfriend is based on Chetan
Bhagat’s 2014 novel of the same name which presents the story of a Bihari boy
named Madhav who falls in love with a Delhi girl named Rhea. The roles are
essayed by Arjun Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor, respectively. There is practically
nothing common between Madhav and Rhea except for their love for basketball.
And so it is the game of basketball that brings them close. While it is a love
at first sight for Madhav, for Rhea it’s little more than a good friend. Or
maybe she is too frightened to make a commitment. But Madhav wants more out of
the relationship and so he tries to cajole Rhea to give their relationship a
formal name. After much contemplation, Rhea declares that at best she can be
his “half girlfriend”—“A little more than a friend but much less than a
girlfriend,” explains Madhav’s friend Shailesh. What ensues is a journey of
self-realization for both Madhav and Rhea with destiny playing its own games.
Half Girlfriend can best be described as an ode to
unrequited love. It is certainly not a perfect film by any means but director Mohit
Suri tries his best to treat the subject matter at hand. He succeeds in making
Chetan Bhagat’s story his own by delivering a film that makes Aashiqui 2 pale
in comparison. Half Girlfriend is a film that's strictly meant for the hopeless
romantic in you.
Arjun Kapoor’s innocent portrayal of a village boy is what
makes Half Girlfriend tick. Here he delivers a heart-touching performance that
makes us root for him till the very end. Rhea comes across as a girl that not
everyone can afford to fall in love with. Not many of us would be able to
relate to Madhav’s infatuation for Rhea. But our own emotions don’t matter,
only his does. And we can’t help but sympathize with him. That’s what a good
performance can do.
Shraddha’s career has been going through a difficult phase.
None of her recent films have performed as per the expectations. There have
been rumors in the grapevine about her alleged affair with Farhan Akhtar.
Bollywood is a competitive place and a slew of box-office failures can prove to
be disastrous for a young actress. Watching her in Half Girlfriend it appears
that she has finally got back her mojo. Just like in Aashiqui 2, it’s her eyes
and not her words that do most of the talking. Credit also goes to Mohit Suri
for eliciting a strong and memorable performance form Shraddha, yet again.
Hopefully, Shraddha would be more careful while choosing her roles from now
own.
Mohit Suri has a way with romantic films. He deserves all
the praise for visually translating the Chetan Bhagat novel. It is no mean feat
to adapt a novel that too of a bestselling author like Bhagat’s. Suri, to his
credit, adds his own nuances to tell a beautiful story. Half Girlfriend marks a
solid return to form for Suri after the abysmal Hamari Adhuri Kahani (2015).
Another important aspect of Half Girlfriend that makes it
stand out is Vishnu Rao’s breathtaking cinematography. The Delhi sequences are so
beautifully shot that they end up doing a great PR for city’s tourism. Also
brilliantly shot are the New York nigh sequences. There is a beautiful night
sequence set at the top of India Gate that might get those who try to imitate
it in some trouble with the authorities.
Vikrant Massey is a talented actor whom we have already seen
in films like Lootera and Dil Dhadakne Do. In Half Girlfriend he steals almost
every scene that he is a part of. His chemistry with Arjun Kapoor’s character
is an absolute treat to watch.
The USP of all good romantic films is the music and who
better than Mohit Suri to understand this? The music of Half Girlfriend tugs at
the heartstrings. It is so intoxicating that one can hear the beats long after
stepping out of the threatre. The song “Phir Bhi Tumko Chaahunga” composed by Mithum
and sung by the one and only Arijit Singh and Shashaa Tirupati is like as an
elixir for the lovelorn hearts.
Half Girlfriend succeeds in stabling a strong parallel
between the rural and urban India and it does so ever so seamlessly. Apart from
the rural-urban divide the class divide is also quite evident. The movie also
touches about some crucial issues needed for rural development such as
education for the girl child. Credit goes to Suri and team for not doing away
with this aspect of the Chetan Bhagat novel.
Rating: 6.5/10
Half Girlfriend Trailer (YouTube)
Readers, please feel free to share your opinion by leaving your comments. As always your valuable thoughts are highly appreciated!
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