Refugee (*ing Abhishek Bachchan, Kareena Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Rina Roy)-SPOILERS

[Rohinik]

Saw this movie when it came out on screen 5 years when I was visiting back home. Abhishek positively scorched the screen with his presence and Kareena (surprisingly) gave off the peaches-and-cream innocent village belle aura. They have beautiful chemistry, in my opinion.

The movie, in terms of plot, is so-so. I loved the love story but the plot with Suneil Shetty and Jackie Shroff had me bored to bits. The songs are classical and a nice treat. Raat ki Hatheli par and Aisa Lagta Hai are beautifully picturized with the desert setting.

The end could have been better, had Shroff and Shetty not started dancing to a song, looking positively ridiculous. Overall, a pretty good movie (in terms of acting from Abhi and Kareena) but it is atrociously long.

Watch it for Abhishek and Kareena!

[GreenBear]

I agree with you. I also think this movie foreshadowed Abhi's amazing performance in Yuva. Found and modified my old review

I really don’t know how to write about Refugee, mainly because it depends on whether I look at it as a whole or just the first two hours. The first 2/3 are completely different, and utterly beautiful. In fact, if the movie ended with them walking away into the Rann, this would have been one of my very favorite BW movies ever.

There is a sharp break between the 2/3 (all the way until Sunil leaves with Kareena, leaving Abishek to the tender mercies of the border guards), and what follows after.

Review for the first 2/3 follows:

The first two+ hours are utterly stunning. It never ceases to astonish me how visually beautiful BW movies are. Refugee and Naaz’ white clad figures blending with the desert, or Kareena in that lighted ruin in the beginning of the movie, or the introductory shot of Abishek in the cave. Utterly “and the Oscar for best Cinematography goes to� beautiful.

I loved the unusual story line (a man who smuggles people and things across the border), I loved the moral grayness (e.g. the head village man), and the bribery and the fact that Refugee is not a stereotypical love-struck romantic (nor a Mumbai yuppie), but a realistic character, and not necessarily super nice at that (people are merchandise to him). I liked the tolerance: how the borders make not much difference.

I liked Naaz, who really was a strong woman. Movies like this, Dev, Chameli, Asoka, are the reason I like Kareena. It’s a pity she earlier got stereotyped/stereotyped herself as Poo, and now seems to be falling into the good girl role with Aitraaz and Bewafa. There is so much more there. She is mesmerizing as Naaz, who certainly is not a meek covering woman: her relationship with Refugee is one of equals. 

The characters were rounded: I could imagine them as real people.

The love story was realistic: their interactions were highly individual, and the chemistry was out of this world, and made me long for another Kareena-Abishek movie (which is pretty unlikely as of now, I’d imagine, but oh well).

I loved the ethnic costumes: all of Kareena’s outfits (especially her bridal outfit) were beautiful, and I spent a good part of the movie puzzling over the weird decoration thing Refugee has on top of his left ear. What is it?

I loved the music: beautiful picturizations and sounds. I especially liked the “pretend wedding� song. It was very sexy: in fact it might give my other fave sexy BW scenes: the dance in the rain from KKHH, the sex scene in Khamoshi and the sword-teaching scene in Asoka, as well as the fantasy scenes in VZ, a good run for their money. I liked that Naaz took the initiative. And then she moved out of her parents’ house later.

And speaking of sexy: check out Abishek! This was my third movie of his. I liked him in KNK and TJCG, but in this movie: it must have been the combination of stubble, the black or white outfits and the “my eyes could bore holes through walls� intensity, but he was hottttttttttt! (reverting to middle school vocabulary). No other word for it, he made me heart go all aflutter. Not only that but he is a much better actor (when given the opportunity) than I then thought he was. I thought he was “quite nice� before, but now I think he can be amazing.

My favorite moments:

1. Naaz’s aunt and uncle shot by the border guards as they joyfully run to “the promised land� as Abishek is bodily restraining Selma, their daughter.

2. Naaz splashing water on the face in the beginning, and Abishek’s arrested gaze as you can see the moment he falls for her hook line and sinker. And the parallel of when they are walking into the Rann and he pours water for her and she wipes his face.

3. Abishek’s intro, sitting in that cave, staring with those inteeeeeeeeeeense eyes of his.

4. The image of Abishek running across the Rann with guns criss-crossed on his back.

5. Mere Humsafar (?): that is one gorgeous wedding night song. I love the determination in Naaz’s face and the look in Refugee’s when he realizes what is about to happen. It’s very sexy when he takes off her ornaments. And you don't need any skin.

6. When Naaz thinks Refugee is shot dead, and she runs and pounds the wall.

7. The speech about equality by Naaz’s father.

8. Abishek being beaten unconscious by the guards. This is from a part of the movie I don’t care for much, but it’s nice to see a hero be beaten down and stay down, as opposed to him bouncing back as if nothing ever happened and they were only pretending to lose.

Too many more to mention.

Last 1/3

So, why is this not my favorite BW movie of all time? The last 1/3. I utterly hated what followed after Sunil left Abishek with the guards. What followed (evil Pakistanis, noble Indians, hooray for Indian border guards) would have been OK in an average BW movie, but was horrible in “Refugee� because of the beauty and sensitivity of what came before, and, more importantly, because it committed major character assassination of several minor characters (the village headman and his brother), and most unforgivable, utter character assassination of Refugee’s character. In fact, I was so puzzled, the only explanation I could come up with was that the severe beating he had must have addled his brain. You could almost feel the creaks, as the writers tried to force the square peg of this unusual story into the round hole of a typical BW blockbuster. From a man who nobly did not believe in borders and differences, Refugee becomes a border guard (and will presumably shoot down such refugees as the ones he used to help across)? From a man with no family, no village, no country, he becomes a rabid Indian patriot? From a man who would risk all daily to cross the border to see Naaz, he will let superior officer order him to stay away from Naaz and comply? How?

The movie took an effort to shoot down all previous subtlety and noble sentiments. Refugee said that his father lives in India, his uncle in Pakistan, but they all are Muslims, they are still family, etc, but all of a sudden, Indian Muslims are noble, and the
Pakistani Muslim Uncle is evil fanatic? And so forth. Refugee who was happily building a house in Pakistani village, now is madly in love with India? Inconsistencies abound.

It’s rather significant, that for the last third, Naaz and Refugee largely disappear as characters. The authors couldn’t know what to do with them any more and still fit them into newly-neat framework of the story. At the end, their reunion is brief and rushed, and the focus in on the authority figures of border-guard leaders.

What I liked the most: the detail, the character development, characters who were not rebels against society, but were simply outside its political and social norms, become compressed into unreal stereotypical figures. At the beginning, Refugee, and to a degree, Naaz don’t rebel against borders, they treat them as if they are insignificant or don’t exist. Naaz is a strong woman, not afraid of living by herself, of ordering Refugee to do things, of making the first sexual move and significantly not ashamed of
it afterwards. At the end, Refugee is constrained into Border-guard strait-jacket, and Naaz is impeded by her heavy pregnancy. A pity.

I still recommend this movie. I am glad I bought it. But when I rewatch it, I will stop with their capture in the Rann. I can pretend they managed to escape or that they got shot. But that way, I won’t have to watch a cliché last 1/3 ruin what would have been a masterpiece of a movie.

[Rohinik]

Yes! "Mere Humsafar" (Wedding song).....oooh...

The decoration-It's an earring on top of his ear. Villagers wear this a lot- I think Anupam Kher, who played his father, also had one in the movie.

The scenes you mentioned were note-worthy. I do wish Naaz's character is portrayed more in BW movies- she is definitely not what her name means! I found her to be strong and determined in what she wanted. And Abhi's eyes smoulder. So much intensity in them.

The "Insaan" speech got a standing ovation and applause in the theater back home I was watching in.

[paok]

A very good Kareena and a very good Amitabh in one of their first roles.
They were the best thing about this film which i found to be slightly above average

[cissyboo]

I enjoyed this film immensely.  Kareena was good, and Abhi was HOT.  I agree about the ridiculousness of Jackie and Suniel dancing at the end of the film-neither one of them is particularly graceful dancers.  Of course, the ease and cleanliness of Kareena giving birth made me laugh-not a mark on her outfit, even though she had been laying on the ground (and childbirth is messy).  I know it was just a movie, but a wee little bit of dirt on her dupatta wouldn't have hurt

[Rohinik]

Yes, the idea of officers dancing like Jogis (sages) is pretty ridiculous. It could have ended well with Kareena's scene, but the song was stuck at the end.

[pagal_ladki]

saw Refugee last night and was a bit disappointed. especially since everyne said it was such a great movie.... 4/10


What I Liked:

Suniel Shetty- i loved his character, right up until the part where he gets in that shoot out with the other officer. i really felt for him. he loved naaz, even if her "loving" him back was all in his head. he went about the whole thing properly, first approaching her, then the parents. even the misunderstanding was not really his fault, since she said "a man like you" although i think he maybe should have double checked with naaz before he went to her parents. his character was good, but not a goody two shoes. he didn't mind getting in Refugee's face and exerting his power in a not nice way. when Naaz goes to him with the accusations of his breaking rafugee's legs, his face looked so striken. also when he found out that naaz loved someone else, this was a v. sad scene. i didn't realize that Suniel could do the "i'm a rebuffed lover, feel sorry for me" look so well. v. nice bit of acting there. after the fight, he kinda started getting a little tiring, what with being oh so nice to the pregnant and deserted naaz. but it was still kind of him and not too sugary sweet. plus Suniel looked v. v. niiiice! 

The Almost Rape- i loved the convo between suniel shetty and his officer after he busts him trying to take selma away. "You like that girl?" " yeah" "you going to marry her?" "i hadn't thought of that." "then stop thinking what your thinking." i loved it. v. clever.

Stunned- loved the scene where Refugee is stunned when naaz says that he will just have to give her some money so she can fix up their house. i thought this was one of the sweetest scenes in the film. he had had a "family" but it wasn't his true family. he had never had someone all for himself. had his own home. and her is naaz offering him his dearest wish, seemingly without even realizing it. she just came to the conclusion that they would have a house and that was that. i don't think that refugee really understood what his alliance with naaz would mean. a home, wife, family, etc. it was just hitting him in that moment. perfect scene.

Cheesy lines- man oh man oh man. the cheesy lines were just pouring forth from refugee's lips. had my ROFL many times. since he was presented as such a hard ass from the begining of the film (ex: people are merchandise, etc.) this junk coming from him sounded so...wrong. he seemed like he would be one who would say "i don't fear my death" instead of "when in love, lives don't matter." eechhh. here's some more zingers: "The joy will flow forth from my eyes." yikes. "If it had been a wound you inflected, it would never heal." uh huh. right. but they were funny anyway. unintentionally. 

Pairing- i thought the kareena-abhi pairing was v. good. they work well together and suit each other. v. nice chemistry going on there.

Clothes- i really enjoyed seeing naaz's outfits. i loved her salwar kameez. also abhi looked pretty good in his black and white outfits. v. nice indeed! 

What I Didn't Like:

Water- uh, hello? you are marching through a desert and you want to dump water all over the ground so you can splash your face? have fun dying of thirst. i hate dumb people.

Flirty- uh hello? your lives are in danger and all you can do is make cow eyes at refugee? laughing and giggling and chasing him around? border gaurds anyone? this was terribly annoying to me. i would think that if i was at risk of being shot dead, flirting with my hot guide would be the last thing on my mind. save it for later.

Highlights- i'd love to know when exactly naaz finds the time to get her highlights done. between running from armed boarder guards and flirting with refugee? "oh lets see... 9:00-sneak from house to house in the village making my way to the raan. 10:00-run from the guards as they shot at me. 11:00-get highlights touched up. 12:00-throw some steamy looks refugee's way. better get started, i have such a busy day!"

Raan Crossing- why oh why did refugee try to cross the raan after he had been warned that the guards knew he was coming at that time? i mean, come on!!! at least wait, or go a different route. and then when they spot him what was that silly litttle drop, crawl 3 feet, then pop back up to get shot move? smooth. v. smooth.

Marriage- okay correct me if i'm wrong here...but naaz and refugee were not married when they did the deed correct? i was so shoked. and v. disappointed in both of them. they couldn't wait? especially when they knew they had naaz's parents consent (well, they thought they had anyway) refugee was being all good and honorable, trying to leave, and she wouldn't let him! huh. i really didn't like this part of the film, because it shows a distinct lack of control on both their parts, a complete disrespect of their religion, and a disregard for naaz's family.

Betrayal- i really was shocked when refugee "went over to the other side". what was this??? this was a complete reversal of his character. one minute he sees no borders, next moment he's a staunch indian patriot and joining the guards? it made no sense. i could understand that he was feeling guilty for bringing the terrorists into india, even though he didn't know they were terrorists at the time. i was expecting him to maybe go hunt them down and kill them hisself or someting along these lines. i think that would have made a better film than him joining the v. people that were hunting him. also i was surprised he sold out all his people. yeah they were bad but still. plus that army uniform looked so dumb on him. the man was made for either those v. nice salwar kameez outfits he was wearing or business suits. yum!

Counting- i think refugee needs to brush up on his counting skills. when the terrorists took over the village and the army sent refugee to see what was waht he came out saying there were about 5 or 6 terrorist left. try 50 or 60. that had to be one of the most unnesccesary and pointless battle scenes ever. it was way overdone. i mean they were blowing up everyones huts! sheesh!

Babies-  naaz looked surprisingly fresh for someone who just had a baby. must be that super short labor. last time i checked people didn't have kids in less than 30 seconds. and the whole baby born on the border thing was way to predictable and cheesy.


Does anyone know who that guy was that was singing the Jise To Na Mila song at teh end? he was the cute one with all the bracelets. i think he was wearing gray or black or some dark color.

[Roj Blake]

I just saw this movie and liked it a lot.  It's a 8.5/10 and quite close to my Top Ten, maybe even in it.

I agree with most of the positives and negatives already discussed in the thread. 

The aspects I like the most about the movie are its "one human family" message, its drawing attention to the plight of refugees after Bangladeshi independence (apparently there are still such refugees even today, more than thirty years later, who were never accepted into Pakistan!), and the look of the desert scenery.  The acting is also strong.  Suniel Shetty has really moved up in my estimation after seeing this movie, pretty much for the reasons given by pagal_ladki.  Perhaps I was also influenced by how selfless his character was, even though I shouldn't be influenced by that.

The main negative of the movie for me is the questioning of some Indian Muslims' loyalty.  Quite a few of those in the village join with the terrorists, seemingly somewhat voluntarily.


A few more things I want to mention:

--  When Naaz leaves Pakistan and her dad is watching, how that is revealed to the viewer (but not Naaz) is superb.  The father really was there all through the scene, but we were focused on Naaz and her mother.  Then there's a zoom in on the father, who had previously been in the background.  Excellent. 

--  I cried when Shadaab gave his life for the country, having reformed.  The movie fulfills the Bollywood "laughter and tears" expectaton.  Good!

--  I liked the scene between Sunil Shetty and Jackie Shroff where they talk about poverty, hunger, homelessness, healthcare -- and how war deprives money from fighting these real enemies.  Yes!

--  I was not disturbed that Refugee started with the Indian border guards.  I felt he was doing so in order to track down the terrorists, and that's it.

-- I was actually really glad that we saw Sunil Shetty dancing at the end.  It brought a smile to my face. 

-- The "cross-border delivery" was heartwarming rather than cheesy to me -- as was the conversation between Sunil Shetty and Jackie Shroff's characters as the delivery took place.

-- I also want to know who the cute guy is who sang the song at the end.   (Was that a qawwali by the way?)

-- Most of the songs seem quite meaningful.  I liked the river/breeze one the most.

-- I did not think Refugee's dialogue with Naaz was cheesy.  The change from his earlier nature was well-shown.  If he had remained distant or cynical, then we wouldn't have seen the power of love!

[Kishi]

I liked Refugee as well. The cinematography was top notch.

[JenniferJanu]

So were they or were they not married? I saw this awhile ago and without subtitles, but I thought they never married in the film and the 'wedding night' was really a faux wedding night and Kareena gave birth out of wedlock (uh oh!). I didn't have a problem with that whole thing, though. I thought it added to the realism. Stuff like that DOES happen.

I thought this was a good movie, but it was a little boring and little too long.

[Plus]

So were they or were they not married? I saw this awhile ago and without subtitles, but I thought they never married in the film and the 'wedding night' was really a faux wedding night and Kareena gave birth out of wedlock (uh oh!). I didn't have a problem with that whole thing, though. I thought it added to the realism. Stuff like that DOES happen.

I thought this was a good movie, but it was a little boring and little too long.

They were not married.  Naaz was trying to make a "home" for them so he could go back and "settle."  On one of his trips back, before he could "settle" they had that faux wedding night thing.

[LolaRuns]

I'm only halfway through it. But I wonder have Suniel and Kareena ever been in anything else together? Because I really liked them as brother/sister in Hulchul and now again.

[alexaha]

I agree with most of the things pagal-ladki mentioned and I was a tad bit disappointed as well, but I'd still rate it higher than her, maybe 6/10.
Overall, it was refreshingly different on the interaction level compared to most stuff I've seen.
- Suniel's character was wonderful, I loved the fact he stayed decent after finding out about Naaz and Refugee. I had been expecting a lot of blood and gore from the moment he set his eyes on her. But no, pleasant surprise there.
- Abhi was okay. Far from what I saw him do in Yuva actingwise, but convincing enough. Actually, I felt like he might have studied SRK's way to go from dead-serious to smiling to turning-head-while-slowly closing-his-eyes. But another member of this forum pointed out to me that SRK might have picked up stuff like that from watching old Amitabh movies....
- Kareena really made the movie for me. The more I see of her, the more I like her. She was perfect as the strong willed young woman who exactly knows what she wants. She's pretty fearless, a bit naive but you can tell there's an inner strength which will grow with time.

I agree with what people have said about the weak points of this movie, be it length, Indian nationalism, etc...
There's one point of disagreement,though. I didn't feel the premarital sex was something to frown upon, a sign of disrespect towards her parents. This was not a functioning society they lived in where social control would have maybe been stronger. Even though she asked for her parents consent Naaz had made up her mind about what to do (think about the house!) way earlier. She and Refugee were very independent characters and somehow thrown out of the "normal" world anyway. I thought it was consequent (?) plotwise to have them determine their "wedding night" not according to society's norms. To them it felt real, there was strong sense of commitment on both sides. So, no problems with this from my side at all !!!

[Sunny]

This has to be one of the most boring films I've ever seen. You will be bored to death, seriously, it feels like a lifetime!

[lauren]

the first two hours of refugee were so good that i'm willing to forgive it for the last horrific hour. i thought this film was great. i liked nearly everything about it but here are a few of my favorite aspects of the film.

Abhishek: was excellent to say this is was his first movie. even so, i can still see that he has come a long way since the refugee days. his character, refugee, really amde this film what it was supposed to be: "a human story" (as proclaimed in the promos). not knowing where one fits into society is something that i think all people struggle with at some point and i think that his transition from "someone who thinks he knows his place to someone who knows his place was very very well protrayed. naming him refugee grew on me as well. to have a name that was not indicative of any region or culture he was surrounded by echoed his forever-continuing journey to find a place he could rest his soul. and the scene where refugee realizes that what he's done all his life, and thought was his rightful destiny/place or purpose in the world was perverted by others just blew me away. i loved this character and abhishek did it full justice.

Kareena: excellent and convincing in this role. not to mention this is the best i've ever seen her looking. i agree with what was said about how she and refugee not having the patience to wait a little before "getting married" but it didn't come off that way in the film. you actually felt sorry for them because they got trapped in all of this. although, its my opinion that naaz did lead on sunil's character. poor guy.

wardrobe: the best i've seen. it wasn't overly flashy or stylish but it was consistent with everything about the film; the setting, the climate, the tone, the characters' personalities. abhi looked stunning in something so simple.

music: definitly hum-worthy! i can't deside which song is my favorite.

now for what i didn't like, most of which happened in the last hour.

the speeches: the ones between jackie and sunil just irked me. too corney and unrealistic. i doubt people talk like that on a daily basis. it just didn't fit

the shift in the plot: had the film just kept following the growth of naaz's and refugee's development as charcters, the last half could have been just as good as the first. either they should have represented the physical sense of being a refugee or the mental/emotion but not both. it didn't work.

lack of information about refugee: yes, i know he has no family blah blah blah. but they enevr even said a thing about why he has no past or family, or how jaan mohammed came to call him son. how'd he got the job of shuttling people across the border? this kind of info could have only made his character more real i think. 

Sunil and Jackie dancing: yes, it was ridiculous looking like everyone has already stated.

overall, great movie for its subtle messages in the first half. i'd give it a 8/10.

[MrB]

I've just wasted almost three and a half hours of my life on this film, and don't have the energy left to write a proper review, but must jot down a few notes.

There were some good points:

• Abhishek & Kareena. They were both remarkably good as debutants. Both very self-assured and convincing. And both took several years before they produced anything as good again.
• The look. Cinematography, costumes, and sets were all beautiful. Which is as well, because you have to look at them for such a very long time.

But the bad points were innumerable. Films involve a suspension of disbelief, but this one made so little contact with plausibility that I felt like shouting at the screen after a while. Just a few of the things that annoyed me:

• Naaz's marriage arrangements. Misunderstandings are a staple of Bollywood films but, even in this genre, the scene where Refugee goes to ask her parents' permission was too much. How did she fail to mention Refugee's name at any point, and how did he fail to acknowledge her father's permission? And how did her parent's fail to spot that the two of them were living together when he was in the village? Didn't they ever notice that she was not at home at nights?
• The veil. It's a small thing, but Naaz was initially veiled and then, after Refugee saw her, she was only veiled once afterwards, and didn't even cover her head most of the time. That doesn't seem like a good way to fit in in their new life in Pakistan. But then it's a shame to cover your hair when you have gone to the trouble of having it highlighted, as Pagal Ladki mentions.
• The fight between Sunil Shetty and the other officer. Firstly: why didn't Sunil say anything to Naaz about the fact that all the accusations were lies? You think he'd make some effort to clear his name. Secondly: what were all the other soldiers doing during the fight? They didn't try to stop it, and didn't even get out of the way. They just leaned against their camels while two fellow officers fought to the death. Thirdly: most armies take a dim view of their officers killing each other, yet no-one seemed in the slightest bit bothered, and Sunil just carried on with his job as if nothing had happened.
• The terrorist son. Refugee's parents threw him out of the house after discovering he had blown up a trainload of people, but didn't mention it to the authorities. While there is such a thing as family loyalty, their inaction did not fit with the dying speech about loyalty to India above all else.
• Cod philosophy. The film overflowed with confused philosophy about India and Pakistan; especially in the conversations between Jackie Shroff and Sunil Shetty. For example, if Jackie's character truly felt that the true enemy was poverty, then starting a conversation with "have a sweet; it's soaked in the blood of innocent Indians" is not a good opening ploy. Its heart was in the right place, but it expressed itself very badly.
• Confusion of Refugee's character. While Abhishek played the role well, the character's oscillations were too hard to believe. Both oscillations between uncaring and caring, and between India and Pakistan: are the border guards so useless that he can go back and forth so often with no-one noticing?
• Editing. The editing was jarring, with scenes cut several frames too early, and starting several frames too late. But this did have the advantage that it cut the running length a little.

And, finally: it was sooooo long. It would have felt over-long at two hours, because of all the irritations but, at well over three hours, it seemed interminable.

In summary: if you are interested to see Abhishek and Kareena in their first roles, then you should make yourself sit through this. Otherwise, steer well clear.

[apsara]

There were some good points:

• Abhishek & Kareena. They were both remarkably good as debutants. Both very self-assured and convincing. And both took several years before they produced anything as good again.
• The look. Cinematography, costumes, and sets were all beautiful. Which is as well, because you have to look at them for such a very long time.

In summary: if you are interested to see Abhishek and Kareena in their first roles, then you should make yourself sit through this. Otherwise, steer well clear.

I have sentimental feelings for this film.
It was one of the first BW movies I saw that did not have SRK in it!
 
Before I 'met' Ajay ...

As a newbie, I was enchanted by the exotic (to me) scenes and I really enjoyed Kareena & Abhi's performances.
Refugee created an impression in my mind of these two - which never left me.
I saw an eternal quality in Kareena, which until Omkara wasn't always emphasized well.
And I thought of Abhi as way more than a hunky guy - I thought he was a good actor.
It does seem that actors will often try hardest and be more genuinely spontaneous in their early attempts.

Perhaps if I watched again - after seeing many many many BW films - I might be more critical.
But I would never lose my affection for this film, which at least to me portrayed something authentic and memorable.
 

[Desimusicclub]

A bit about Abhishek's debut film, Refugee. The pressure on him when this film opened must have been just incredible for the simple reason that his performance would not be compared to other actors. No, it would be compared to arguably the most popular Bollywood actor ever, his father - Amitabh Bachchan. Adding to the hype would be the fact that the film would also be the debut for none other than Raj Kapoor's granddaughter, Kareena Kapoor. The result? A solidly entertaining movie that received mixed reviews but proved that both stars had some solid acting chops, genetics maybe? The movie also did quite well at the Filmfare Awards that year - winning for best debut performance (Kareena), best dialogue, best cinematography and best song which is one of the selections for this week.

I really enjoyed this movie for many reasons including the fact that it had a very different story, incredible cimematic shots, great performances by all involved and of course - fantastic songs. Abhishek did an admirable job of carving out his own style of acting, reminding us of his father but using his own abilities to make the role his own. Kareena was a real eye opener as well - she portrayed quiet grace and dignity that far surpassed the fact that this was her first movie. Also, Sunil Shetty finally acted for once and gave some real substance to the character of the Pakistani policeman with a strong moral backbone (a rarity in Bollywood where caricatures are the norm). Yes, it did have some cheesy moments but they are forgivable in the context of the message of the movie - namely, we (Indians & Pakistanis) are really not all that different so why can't we just get along?

The two songs from the soundtrack are Mere Humsafar and Panchhi Nadiya the latter of which won the Filmfare Award, both sung by Sonu Nigam & Alka Yagnik. And lastly, one final picture of the new groom getting mehndi put on him before his wedding - after succeeding on his own and one of the best actors in Bollywood today he definitely has made papa proud.

[los angeles]

Liked Kareena and AB in this, though it's safe to say that they probably both went on to make much more well-known movies. It's interesting to see these kind of early performances from them.
Some colorful regional costumes in this movie too

[NewLaura]

I completely agree with GreenBear, this film should have ended after two hours with the two of them running off into the desert.  I found the last hour excruciatingly bad.  And it just got worse and worse.  The terrorist invasion of the village, the uncle shooting the father, the bizarre battle in the village, Abhishek and the bazooka (or whatever that was), Sunil and Jackie singing, the instantaneous birth right beside the border marker, Sunil and Jackie with their long, preachy, completely unnatural-sounding speeches to each other,…I was dumbfounded.

Abhishek and Kareena both did good jobs in their debuts, though.  I liked the songs.  And the setting and costumes were beautiful.  I also liked Sunil Shetty's performance and his character.

[elizabethbennet]

I'm a fan of Abhi but I didn't think he was good in this one however he had suprisingly good chemistry with Kareena.

Apart from Abhi, I didn't find anything in this film worth viewing. It is boring with everyone overacting their hearts out and the story is filled with clichés. However, if you think Abhi is hot then it is a must watch but only for eye candy.