Building bridges, getting bored

I used to believe that when Karan Johar creates a hullaballoo about a movie that he has produced, you can well expect his signature naach gaana, bubble-gum romance, a blah story but made technicolour with OTT melodrama. I was wrong. Johar creates a hullaballoo because he produced Gori Tere Pyar Mein - but the movie is far from the usual Dharma Productions projects.

Gori Tere Pyar Mein (GTPM) starring Kareena Kapoor and Imran Khan seems to be Dharma Productions trying to grow up a little, very half heartedly. Steering away from college and school romances (Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Student of the Year), infidelity and promiscuity (

Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna) and general melodrama (Kal Ho Na Ho, Kabhie Khushi Kabhie Gham) - GTPM deals with a coming-of-age romance. Or so we would like to label for the want of something less mean.

Sriram (Imran) is a the cool America returned architect who has no plans of putting his degree to decent use. His sudh Tamil parents figure that marrying him off is the only way to make him see sense. In comes Vasudha (Shraddha Kapoor in a cameo), and as the wedding date draws closer, Sriram pours his heart out to her about Dia (Kareena Kapoor), his ex.

GTPM narrates the love story as a flashback as Sriram explains to Vasudha why her love story (with a sardar Kamal, is doomed to crash and burn). Dia is a NGO worker ‘type’ trying to change the world one social problem at a time, she tries to change the no-good hero, but fails and that is what ends things between them.

But as luck, and Bollywood, would have it Sriram realises that he still loves Dia and he must get her back.  So off the hero goes to get his gori back. And of course it isn’t easy, she’s in a village on the MP, Gujarat border that doesn’t have a bridge. Ergo, he must build a bridge. And that again, is not easy.

Directed by Punit Malhotra, GTPM is boring. The first half is better than the second and no amount of antics on the part of Imran or Anupam Kher (in his corrupt collector role) can salvage this film. This blow-hot-blow-cold chemistry between the two protagonists loses steam in the very first hour. There is very little to look forward to.

The songs are fine but we have heard them before and sitting around for two and a half hours just for a few songs is not my fun plan. Imran stumbles through GTPM with his ‘Yo Bro’ way of working things out, Kareena seethes, melts and then seethes some more.

As I was walking out of the hall, I overheard someone saying - ‘Yaar Singh Saab the Great dekh lete...that would have been more fun!’  - I was almost convinced.