True Love. Review on Tum Bin Jaoon Kahan

The Story: Tum Bin Jaoon Kahan

Two college students meet and fall in love. Aryan and Muskan. A perfect pair. They look good together have great chemistry on screen. The audience is thrilled. Then as usual in serials the gloom and doom starts. Aryan suddenly has to go to London because his father has a heart attack. Muskan is left high and dry. A jealous friend in love with Aryan herself misleads Muskan into thinking Aryan has gone off to marry someone else. Heartbroken, Muskan agrees to marry a boy of her parents choice within the week.

Return of Aryan. He is shocked and bewildered till he finds out why Muskan agreed. He rushes to whisk her away from the wedding. And away they go. There is an accident, and Muskan dies. Aryan is shattered. He becomes ill and contemplates suicide, and only because of his parents he cannot go through with it. He starts contacting Muskan's spirit (Have I lost you guys now?). He keeps trying to communicate to her because he wants to be with her so badly. He is completely grief stricken.

Muskan's spirit becomes very unhappy and agitated and promises Aryan she will be reborn just for him, and she even gives him the date and location. (Okay, stop making faces!! I know what you are thinking, but seriously they have managed to make this interesting!!) Aryan, goes to the allotted place a year later and doesn't find the newly born girl that Muskan has promised she will return as. Dejected he leaves.

Years go by. Aryan turns into a brooding, foul tempered workaholic. His parents convince him to get engaged to a girl named Shweta. To make them happy he agrees. Meanwhile, Muskan is three years old, and her new family has named her Khushi. Muskan's spirit cannot bear Aryan marrying anyone else. Since Muskan has gone against destiny to be reborn again she has divine intervention and power on her side. In an accident, Shweta dies. Aryan is completely traumatized now.

The drama skips ahead two more years. Aryan has become slightly inclined towards the bottle. All he does is miss Muskan and call her name in a drunken state every night. The born again Muskan (who is Khushi now) can hear him and feel his grief. She is a very sad and distraught child who stares off in the distance and is always lost in her own thoughts.

So Aryan becomes rude with his family, peers and patients. He has given up hope for everything. All he can think about is Muskan. Enter Durga who is his Chachi's younger sister. During her visit Durga gets close to Aryan, and Aryan starts living again. He and Durga become great friends, and he gives up his drinking, starts having fun, and begins smiling again.

Aryan's parents are thrilled and want Durga to marry Aryan. They try to convince Aryan, but he is confused. Eventually he realizes that he cares for Durga also, so he proposes. The two get engaged. He goes to the place where Muskan died and prays for her soul and says that he is sure Muskan will not be hurt by this because he knows that Muskan only wanted him to be happy. (Guys please note that women are jealous as hell.....and would haunt their husband/boyfriends from beyond the grave if they could....little does Aryan know that Muskan is doing just that!!)

Khushi is now five, and she becomes very upset with Aryan proposing to Durga. However, Khushi is not the only one upset. Durga's sister is also very agitated with Aryan and Durga's match. She can sense something is wrong with Aryan. She discovers from a soothsayer/psychic/black magic lady (a very glamorous one to boot with fake eyelashes) that anyone who tries to get close to Aryan will die as there is a power surrounding Aryan who does not want him to get married. The Guruji at the Temple (who has a pretty significant role) also knows this, and he also knows that Muskan has been reborn as Khushi. He is determined to break Muskan's hold on Aryan's life and vows to make sure Aryan and Durga get married within three days.

Whew. I am sure I lost a bunch of you along the way. I think I lost myself too!!

Well that is pretty much all of the plot that I have seen so far. I've tried to give as much detail as I possibly could for people who have just started watching it, so they aren't thoroughly confused as to what happened in the beginning!!

NOTE: The serial in India is way ahead from The States, and from what I have read in other reviews: Durga and Aryan do get married. Durga dies afterwards in an accident. A few more years go by, but she returns as she was somehow typically saved.

I haven't seen it this far ahead so can't really comment on it.

My Comments: 0.02

I am completely surprised by the fact that I really enjoy watching Tum Bin Jaoon Kahan. I am not a drama freak and most of them really make me sick to my stomach. The storyline is very romantic and different in more of a mysterious way rather than the typical cheesy romantic dialogues, running around trees and creepy background dancers.

I wanted to give my 0.02 cents about this drama because for a change there is something different and actually interesting in the drama sector. The concept of reincarnation is a fascinating one itself. Then the idealistic view of love throughout janams is something that most people scorn outwardly nowadays but secretly wonder about it.

This drama has really captured both effectively. Although, you feel for Aryan you also are really waiting for him to meet Muskan/Khushi again. (I really hope they don't turn this into a Kkhusum nightmare......I know, I know....fat chance but watch it while it is still good!!) And after every woman in Aryan's life dies in a vehicular assault......I think it's time for him to find Muskan/Khushi pretty soon. Or stay single now until he does coz both the girls (Shweta and Durga) have been portrayed as very nice girls and it's sad to see them die (though the viewer knows they have too). You can't help but still root for Muskan/Khushi. She's come back from the dead after all. (I know, I know....but everyone is a sucker for ''true love''). Admit it or not. :)

Overall, it's a good drama (It's still a drama, so keep that in mind. Don't expect like something really out there!!). It is just much better than everything else on TV (besides Jessie Jaisi Kohi Nahin which is also different) unless you like the saas/bahu/sister-inlaws wearing extravagant saris, globs of make up and plotting against each other. If that is the case then more power to you folks.

All the actors are good. The way they show the young Khushi with a sad look and her sweet smile (with minimal dialogue) work really well. Although the drama has a lot of suspense, it is not overly dragged out (for once!!).

I hope they bring back the original Muskan/Khushi (maybe with a new look) b/c Aryan and Muskan looked cute together, and I think that is what everyone is really waiting for. I mean isn't this the whole point?

Anyway, two thumbs up. :)

Pros : The concept of true love and reincarnation is interesting.

Cons: There should be more flashbacks of Muskan and Aryan together to keep reminding the audience how much they loved each other. Otherwise the audience will get caught up in the sadness in Aryan's life and will start thinking Khushi is evil.