The Luv Ranjan brand of romantic cinema is aimed primarily at the youth. I would add an asterisk and say *Youth of all ages!
The man who has produced the Pyaar Ka Punch-Nama franchise, the De De Pyaar De franchise, Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar (most of them also as director) and co-produced Cocktail 2 has given us varied shades of youthful romances, and fresh angles to them as well. He has also made it a point to back talented newcomers and we see that in maximum play in this latest delightful love cocktail wherein he has introduced six newcomers to Hindi mainstream cinema.
If we just overlook the School Reunion base (Which school batch celebrates so late? And couldn’t it have been a college reunion?) as a Manmohan Desai kind of mammoth suspension of disbelief, the film is a steamroller of breezy, non-stop entertainment full of ‘Luv’ at the hands of newbie director Anuj Saini and his co-writers Luv Ranjan again and Jehan Handa.
Three classmates live together (needless to say, platonically)— Shivi (Sargun Kaur Luthra), Vedant (Kunal Vaid) and Gautam (Sparsh Walia). They all have different approaches to life and ‘Luv.’ When the prospect of their school reunion looms, they again have diverse views on attending, and Shivi hates the very idea. But it is a tacit understanding between them that they will all be together in whatever enterprise they take on, and so they head to the event. They also remember and look forward to seeing their first crushes in school at the multi-day event.
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Gautam’s one-time love, Gehna (Alisha Chopra), is no less than a femme fatale who does not let go of men easily, and when she becomes too aggressive, he just wishes to forget her, and if only wishes were horses, he would zoom away. Her ex, a classmate named Karan (Rishabh Dev Singh), who has come along with his fiancée and is a one-woman man, warns Gautam that the only way Gehna will let go of him is if he disappears—from her life and from all social media. And so Gautam is desperate to split from Gehna and fall out of ‘Luv.’
Meanwhile, Vedant comes across his crush, Simran (Sakshi Vaidya), a topper who no one wants to be close to for that very reason, and a camaraderie develops. But Hello! Simran is engaged to a family friend’s boorish son, Vikesh (Gobind Singh Mehta) and though she likes Vedant, she cannot break her ties with him as it would disturb two families. And Vedant is now desperate to win over his ‘Luv,’ no matter what!
As for Shivi, she realizes that her crush, Karan (Tushar Chhibber), is a playboy and a stud, but she still decides to divert him from other girls, who are ever available for him. Too late, she understands he is not her type. And disgusted that she did not find true ‘Luv’ with him, again blames Vedant and Gautam for bringing her to a reunion she never wanted to attend.
The romantic merry-go-rounds and rollercoasters that follow give joy, pain, pathos and confusion to these three fast friends and endless entertainment for the viewers. The ‘dialogue’ or lines are smart and enliven the proceedings with their sheer relatability. The sequences are usually straight out of life and when they go into the realm of illogic, it is all in the sacred cause of manoranjan, manoranjan and manoranjan extraordinaire.
The music keeps pace. Rochak Kohli’s melodies are pleasing and the lyrics by Kumaar in Kinni raataan baad peeti hai and Purane din are the best of the lot. One just wishes that the orchestration was not so heavily guitar-based or (as in Kinni raataan baad) cluttered. Great and judicious orchestration would have enhanced the melodies.
Technically bright and polished, the film’s six aces are its new stars, none of them give the impression that it is their first excursion as leads on the Hindi mainstream big screen. The makers also promote the artistes within film in a detailed manner, which is praiseworthy.
From them all, Sparsh Walia looks like a Kartik Aaryan (who was also discovered by Luv!) doppelganger and this may steamroll this talented boy’s progress. The rest, except for Tushar Chhibber, have done other work to varying extents in regional cinema, shorts, serials and mini-series,but they are all very good. If anyone stands out among them at all it is…no! no! I will not play favorites, they are all so delightful.
And together, they make this film a superbly lively piece of pure, cinematic fun. I will catch this film doosri baar (a second time) for sure!
Rating: ****
Luv Films’ Pehla Pyaar Doosri Baar Produced by: Luv Ranjan & Ankur Garg Directed by: Anuj Saini Written by: Luv Ranjan, Anuj Sahni & Jehan Handa Music: Rochak Kohli & Tanishk Bagchi Starring: Sakshi Vaidya, Alisha Chopra, Sargun Kaur Luthra, Sparsh Walia, Kunal Vaid, Tushar Chhibber, Nikhat Khan, Gobind Singh Mehta, Rishabh Dev Singh, Ishika Jaiwani & others.
