Kajol and Ajay Devgan in a still from 'U Me Aur Hum'. Photo credit: EroseApril 11, 2008 (Sawf News) - Shortly before its release Ajay Devgan had told the press that he was confident audiences would like his film. He was off the mark. They loved it! Rarely have we seen a film end to a standing ovation from the audience.
Ironically, it was a small audience, one fourth the capacity, but it was an audience that walked out knowing they had done a smart thing by seeing the film.
Ajay Devgan's directorial debut is a romance that stars him and wife Kajol in lead roles. They are supported by Karan Khanna, Isha Sharvani, Sumeet Raghavan and Divya Dutta.
Kajol and Ajay Devgan in a still from 'U Me Aur Hum'. Photo credit: EroseKajol plays a waitress, Piya, on a cruise liner. Ajay plays a psychiatrist on a cruise in the company of two friends and their partners, all of whom are out for a good time. He is smitten when he sees Piya, and wants to score a kill, but she is no walkover. It is a tough call but he pursues his goal with a single mindedness that forays repeatedly into the comic.
The first half has a lot of laughs but none of it is either slapstick or contrived. Instead, the script draws you into the company of the three college friends and invites you to laugh with them, something you end up doing readily.
Divya Dutta (R) and Isha Sharvani in a still from 'U Me Aur Hum'. Photo credit: EroseA wedding follows the straight forward courtship and the couple settles down into marital bliss. However, a marriage can be as difficult as it is fulfilling, and romance and love are not nearly the same things. Romance tends to end but love endures.
Ajay and Piya have more than their fair share of travails during the course of their marriage. The odds get stacked against them to an extent where love is stretched to a breaking point…
The film is marked by brilliant performances by Ajay and Kajol, who focus on coming good in difficult roles, rather than their makeover and style. They are ably supported by Karan Khanna, Divya Dutta and Sumeet Raghavan.
Ajay Devgan behind camera at the filming of 'U Me Aur Hum'. Photo credit: EroseThe script and story telling is tight, but not tight enough. There were the fast forward moments, but they were almost immediately negated by dramatic twists in the plot that followed.
Musical score by Vishal Bhardwaj is pleasing and dovetails well with the script.
We were impressed by Ajay Devgan's direction. He has used the camera with great deftness, making technology do what was in his mind, rather than do what technology could do for him.
Ajay Devgan behind camera at the filming of 'U Me Aur Hum'. Photo credit: EroseYou Me Aur Hum is a brilliant film, no doubts about it. It is easily amongst the five best films that we have seen in the last 3 years.
Its initial draw at the box office is not impressive but we think that will change. The critics can pan it to their heart's desire, but this film will go a long way at the box office, because of word of mouth publicity.
Whether it will go beyond the recent sensitively made film Taare Zameen Par remains to be seen. Our opinion is - it should.
The film has impressed our team at Sawf News to do something that we have not done in 3 years - give a film a four star rating!
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