Mohabbat of three plus one couples!!. Review on Mohabbatein

“Pyar zindagi ki tarah hota hain.”

• Raj Aryan, Mohabbatein.

There was a time when Yash Raj Films used to be synonymous with seriously romantic cinema. I should say that Mohabbatein is NOT one of Yash Raj's finest. It is regressive at best and the message it seems to give the youth of today is:

Step 1.The only goal in one's life is to find someone and fall in love with them.

Step 2. Make that person also reciprocate your feelings by hook or by crook or by the usage of dry maple leaves lying all over the city where you both live. You can write love notes on the dry leaves, instead of wasting paper, thus conserving trees and nature.

Step 3. Now it is time to examine your parents’ values and mentality. That is evaluating what they would say if you told them that your ambition in life is fulfilled and you are ready for marriage.

Step 4. This is divided into 4 A. and 4 B.

Step 4 A. If YOUR parents are against "love marriages" and in general you think would oppose your choice in life, jump down from the terrace of your house and die, thus becoming "immortal" as a true lover who has the "jaadui shakti" to make special appearances as a ghost through out the life of your lover(especially during festivals and dances) who is still alive.

Step 4 B. If YOUR LOVER'S parents are against "love marriages" and in general your lover thinks that they would oppose your lover’s choice in life, mope all over and mourn your(now) dead lover and let some years pass. After that, dress in business casual clothes(don't forget to delicately drape a sweater over your quivering shoulders) and go to the place of work of your lover’s parent(s) while carrying an old rusty violin with you.

Now become the music teacher(or any other job that is available at the current moment with in the organization that your lover’s father runs) and begin the "noble service" of making other youngsters in your classes follow your ambitious path in life(go back to Step 1and read on).

Now I’m expecting some protest from Yash Raj and SRK fans. Let me tell you that I enjoyed a lot of Yash Raj’s movies and Silsila is among my favorites. Let me also emphasize that I’m not an SRK hater at all. In fact, I loved his earlier films like Kabhi Haan Kabhi Haan and think that he is capable of good acting even now, although I have not yet watched Chak De India but heard some great things about the movie.

I would not have had any complaints about how this movie progressed if only it was merely an entertainer. What irked me was the fact that the movie delivers a sort of twisted message about love. As far as I know, love is some thing that happens and is not to be FORCED.  So, lecturing impressionable high school boys about “love” and the importance of it in one’s life, seems far from ideal, but this is what the protagonist seems to be doing in the movie. Then, he selects three “boys, ” the eternally-a-boy Jugal Hansraj, the never-a-boy-always-an-ape Uday Chopra and the too-morose-looking-to-be-a-boy Jimmy Shergill in his “music class”(in quotes because I haven’t seen the students in the class EVER “playing” a musical instrument. All they did was watch as their *“Masterji” was playing his instrument of choice, the rusty violin from step 4B above, with stars in their eyes). Now these three are brainwashed about ‘Zindagi, ’ ‘Pyar, ’ ‘Dosti’ like universal terms by the *‘Masterji, *’ whom they immensely admire(for no apparent reason).

Now it’s the turn of these three “boys” to select three different “girls”(an arrogant Shamita Shetty, awidowed Preity Jhangiani and an I’m-under-nourished-so-brain-and-vocal-cords-did-not-fully-develop* Kim Sharma).

You see, everyone has to fall in love to have led a “complete”life, so the earlier in life you get started the better! After all the three pairs have sung and danced in various numbers, it is opposition time from the parent of lover from Step 4A(though he has been opposing from the beginning and forgot to take action!). It is also time for revenge against the lover’s father for the love that you lost because you andyour lover did not have the guts to standup for your own love.

Several clashes, dramatic moments and tears later, all is fine and ends well and everyone is happy.

You have now officially accomplished ALL that you were born on this Earth to accomplish.

Seriously speaking, what kind of a regressive thinking methodology is this? If one truly loves someone, one takes a stand against those who oppose their love for no reason except that of tradition. The ‘message’ (there was no NEED for one, if you ask me!)the film conveys is very inconsistent. On the one hand, this film portrayed that even death is better than going against your parents. On the other hand, you can go against school principals and other lawful authorities for your so-called “love.”

This is one movie that completely mal-defined Love. Doesn’t being in love with someone mean that you stand by that person in ALL TIMES and ALL SITUATIONS? Do you consider some one who’d rather commit suicide than stand by you in times of trouble to be truly in love with you?

I wouldn’t.

There is such implausibility in important scenes and there are so many contradictions in this film that I cannot go into them AND stay with in the word limit.

To sum it up, a very forgettable movie except for some great songs. Stars Shahrukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai as the main lovers. Amitabh Bacchan plays the somewhat Hitlor’ish school principal, also father of Aishwarya Rai.

I recommend that you do NOT watch this movie.