Please make more movies like this one!. Review on Salaam Namaste

I don't understand why people hated this movie, I thought it was excellent, I loved it!! I bought it and have watched it at least 20 times. Quite honestly, I think the reason why bollywood movie haven't yet grabbed the major international market is because of the subjects they deal with. I mean really, how many times do we have to watch the perfect love story? I mean the boy-meets-girl-falls-in-love-only-to-be-opposed-by-the-parents story is TIRED!! Bollywood needs something fresh, that's never been done before and this movie hit the mark.

Basic plot:

Nik (Saif Ali Khan) and Ambar (Preity Zinta) are two hip, yong and independent Indians living in Melbourne, Australia. Nik is a chef who studied architecture and ambar is paying her way through med school by working as an RJ at an Indian radio station Salaam Namaste. Ambar interviews successful Indians living in Australia and one day decides to interview Nik, who's the head chef of a restaurant. Ambar is a morning person and HATES late comers, while Nik never sleeps at night. So, Nik is late for Ambar's interview, and she get MAD

then follows a series of funny dialogues as Nik calls Ambar (who's sullied his reputation) to get his own back. They finally meet at a wedding, not knowing what the other looks like are instantly attracted to each other. Nik's best friend Ron (Arshad Warsi) accompanies him to the same wedding and falls head over heels for Ambar's best friend Cathy (Tania Zaetta), whom he marries the very next day. Nik and Ambar finally discover each other's identities and Nik finally goes for the interview, where he declares his love for Ambar, to which ambar basically replies that he's crazy. So he suggests they move in together (in separate bedrooms) to get to know each other better. What follows is a fun ride through a movie that deals with modern issues like live-in relationships, pre-marital sex and pregnancy out of wedlock. The movie also deals with the feelings involved in taking these important decisions in life and dealing with the consequences of making hasty decisions based on lust and not love.

the Cast

Saif Ali Khan as Nik is hilarious!! His comic timing is perfect and he breathes life into Nik's character. You want to hate him for being such a self-centred insensitive jerk, and yet you completely understand because his character of a commitment phobic man is real. His transformation is believable, especially the reasons behind why he changes his mind. Saif Ali Khan is a very underused actor, the man is excellent and he never goes over the top with his comic scenes as many actors tend to, he is naturally funny. If he could only find another expletive besides CRAP

Preity Zinta as Ambar is also very good. You know she's attracted to Nik, yet her reservations at the idea of living together are understandable and again, very real. She knows what she feels for him initial is just attraction and not love and like all women, is afraid to put her heart on the line for a man who might just be passing by. And for the record, those who think it's impossible, trust me it's not, a pregnant woman CAN actually dance, even as far along as Preity was in the movie.

Arshad Warsi as Ron is quite funny and his facial expressions were hilarious. And he's the typical funny, loving and caring best friend to a self-centred jerk.

Tania Zaetta as Cathy was the first fault in the film. She irritated and went over the top at times.

the supporting cast was a delight to watch Although the crocodile dundee character also tended to irritate at times. Debonair was okay, so was the restaurant owner (can't remember his name). I loved Abhishek as the confussed doctor, although he also tended to go over the top.

Let's dissect it

I felt the movie dealt with an issue that is real, however much we try to be prude about it. The fact is, people DO live together before marriage, they DO have sex before marriage and they sometimes DO fall pregnant out of wedlock too. It's a reality that has to be faced and I admire Siddhart Anand and abbas Tyrewala for being so bold as to address such a subject. I think it's time bollywood did concentrate on something other than fantacy. Yes I know films are a way of escaping reality, but you can mix fact with fiction, as is proven by this movie. with all the pros, there are cons as well. The Croc dundee charecter, while funny in some instances, got irritating after a while. Jugal Hansraj's character was not necessary, at first I thought he would play a more significant role, but alas, he didn't do much for the movie. Tania Zaetta, I don't think I can like her even if I tried. She sucked in B'nB and sucks even more in this movie! I felt the scene at the hospital, although funny, was misplaced. I mean you had all that emotion from Nik's admission on radio and his search for her, and then suddenly, you have slapstick comedy. I thought the doc was funny, but I feel humour was not neeed in the last scene, at least not to the extent it went. Overall, this was a fantastic movie and was a much needed break from your usual run on the mill romantic nonsense we get from bollywood everyday.

Music

The movie had a great soundtrack, my favourite being My dil goes hhmm. The other songs were also quite entertaining.