Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna by Karan Johar : Review
Posted by JV on August 14, 2006
Beat me if you want to but I cant stop comparing.
The subject which Karan Johar deals with is serious and delicate. Extra martial affairs of married perons. It is quite clear that this not new or bold approach. Silsila (1981), which co-incidently stars Amitabh, also deal with somewhat same subject. Closer (2004) seems source of inspiration to KANK. Well, there is nothing wrong in inspiration.
It is definate, for most of rural Indians this movie will come as great shock. The movie tells the story about affair between two persons, who are unsatisfied and unhappy in marriage relations with their respective partners.
The story is interesting enough and watchable. You can call it five stars, may not for the rating purpose, but for the casting todays biggest stars of Bollywood. Presence of these stars prevails heavily over the sotry line and story becomes of secondary importance, which is large drawback.
Further, the movie is little less gripping, blanks and gaps leave you wondering.For example, at a crucial moment , when Abhishek and Priety Zinta meet and discuss problems about their partners and decide to call them for forgiveness . Unfortuantely cell of Shahrukh and Rani were engaged, so voicemail messages were left. However, these messages were never seemed to be recovered, at least I did not notice anywhere. I eagerly waited and wished that the messages were listned to but it never happend.
The message conveyed by the movie is somewhat clear, if a person is not happy with a relation s/he should quit the relation. One can argue either way, after all morality is subjective, so it is left to everybody’s own discreation weather movie deals with
the subject properly or not.
But the treatment of the movie is of my main concern. The movie could have been made more thoughtful with deeper pentration in personal feelings. It is not that movies are made purely for entertainment and again it is not that Indian viewers do not accept serious stuff. BLACK is latest example of taste of Indian viewers.
In the movie you can hardly found a painful soul. Sharukh finds difficult to appear as frustrated man in a relation. Pritey acts natually as a career oriented woman, who claims to wear pant in the house. Abhishek, a party organiser and night creature expects warmath and affection from his wife. Rani disappoints as a characteer who is disappointed in every walk of life , primarily for her incapacity to bear child. Amitabh,casanova father of Abhishek is good as he gets , but entirely unnecssary fo the story.
I am not bollywood trade pundit, but I can predict that this movie will earn sufficient to be claimed as a superhit. But that is not criteria of a memorable film and certainly this movie does not fall in such category.
* * *
Some good and intesting reviews :
* full2faltu
* hirenshah
* mypyp
August 15, 2006 at 1:34 pm
Sharuk : Dev in KANK did not suite you because that character lacks innocence in his eyes.
We did not expect such a blunder from Karan Johar
August 15, 2006 at 1:36 pm
Sharuk : Dev in KANK did not suite you because that character lacks innocence in his eyes.
We did not expect such a blunder from Karan Johar……………….
August 15, 2006 at 1:53 pm
i rate this movie as karan johar’s fourth best movie.B’coz what his fans expected from him was not reflected in it.moreover the relationship between father and son was not so practical and it looks very blunder to see father with a foreign kudi.
dev ko zara sharam nahin aathi ki dusron ki biwi ke saath khelta. agar usko rani se pyaaar tha to usse shaadi karke le jaana chahiye.is movie mein sabse achchha scene yeh hai jisme preeti gives a good deserving slap to his cock pathi.
August 15, 2006 at 1:53 pm
I rate this movie as Karan Johar’s fourth best movie.B’coz what his fans expected from him was not reflected in it.moreover the relationship between father and son was not so practical and it looks very blunder to see father with a fore
ign kudi.
dev ko zara bhi sharam nahin aathi ki dusron ki biwi ke saath khelta. agar usko rani se pyaaar tha to usse shaadi karke le jaana chahiye.is movie mein sabse achchha scene yeh hai jisme preeti gives a good deserving slap to his cock pathi.
August 15, 2006 at 1:58 pm
Kuch KUch Hota Hai Made me to think about the value of love.
KABHI KHUSHI KABHI GHAM MADE TO THINK ABOUT THE VALUE OF FAMILY.
KAL HO NAA HO MADE ME TO THINK OF VALUE OF LIFE AND SACRIFICE FOR LOVE.
KABHI ALVIDA NA KEHNA MADE ME TO GET OUT OF THE THEATER . I didnt expect such a blunder from you Karan Johar.
Shame on you Karan Johar
August 15, 2006 at 5:20 pm
Yes, the movie could leave a thoughtful message. But infact it made me thing leave the movie instead.
I don’t complain about obscene situation which were quite unnecssary, may be that is sign of a progressive and forward looking movie maker. But I couldn’t digest it.
August 17, 2006 at 3:13 am
i actualy thought the movie was half decent…i mean come on we all had HUGE expectations and the chances of it living up to it were very slim. But i guess there was too many flaws in KANK such as;
-the failed relationship between Abishek and Rani was very vague
-Abisheks acting in places where its been so good in the past was weak e.g the argument with Rani. And the relationship with Amitabh was terrible. Last year in Sarkar and Bunty Aur Bubly it was terrific it didn’t quite click this time also “Dude” was soooo annoying!
-As K3G and Kal Ho Na Ho had given morals at the end, this portrayed cheating on wifes and husbands as justifiable
-Plus many more!
HOWEVER Shahrukh’s acting was terrific and so was Rani’s - Both did exceptionally well in a movie where the plot was rusty.
Out of 10? About…..7……no make that 6.5.
August 17, 2006 at 10:32 am
Now , that is exactly what I thought of the movie.
August 17, 2006 at 6:03 pm
Come on………. this isn’t the first movie that touches on this subject what about Akhir Kaun?, my god not all of Karans films can be happy ever after family sagas can they!!!! Karan is trying to show 2 things number one think carefully before you marry and two it is better to have 2 people happy than 4 people unhappy!! why can’t people see the positive rather than the negative points??? because its Karan Johar? A refereshing chage and a realistic outlook on sooooo many marraiges out there or indeed divorced couples. 9 out of 10.
August 17, 2006 at 6:10 pm
Thanks Rani (!?!)
I can see the positive thing, it is the subject as I said, indeed a good subject, but poor treatment -where it hurts.
August 17, 2006 at 7:15 pm
You lost me JV you lost me…. poor treatment in terms of…………?
August 17, 2006 at 7:42 pm
In terms of ..
- unneccsary characters
- unneccsary scenes , well include songs as well
- why in New York, why not in Mumbai, when the story related to Indian couples and made for Indian public, or isn’t it?
- to me entire movie seemed a glamour movie , whereas it should be gloomy.
I agree and I understand the message conveyed. (you can see in the bold letters in my post). But what I meant, what I try to convey is the message by the movie is not well convyed. (I can’t stop laughing, I find difficult to explain, sorry for that)
I try again. What I mean that when two people fall out of wedding lock and betray their partner, it is VERY serious thing, but the movie seems to take it lightly. The movie ends in happy ending, as all Indian movies do.
Well, uh.. I hope you understand
August 18, 2006 at 12:15 pm
THIS IS THE WORST MOVIE I HAVE EVER SEEN,AND AM SURE AM NOY GONNA SEE ANY THING AS BAD AS THIS.SOME GIVE SHAHRUKH(OUR OWN DESI BECKHAM - VICTORY) SOME CONSTIPATION PILLS.AND 1 MESSAGE TO AMITABH - PLZ DONT DO THIS AGAIN,EVEN IF SOME1 PAYS U A 1000MILLION !
August 18, 2006 at 6:22 pm
You seem very disappointed.
August 18, 2006 at 6:53 pm
JV very funny………… you are entitled to your opinion but Karan always does glamour movies as you well know. Also I don;t think this movie is for the typical asian but for a more westernised individual. It is a serious matter agreed but it hapens all day and night long all over the world! I don’t think the film shows it in a light manner at all obviously you don;t quite understand the film. It takes a deep and mature person ti understand this film and if your single it will ne hard to relate to it the way KJ has intended. Never mind…………..
August 18, 2006 at 8:29 pm
There you are… you got the point which I have been pondering.
I am not more or less westernised. Then ‘the westernised’ viewer better watch ‘Closer’, it is more westernised than KANK
Rani, to tell you the truth, I could ,at some lesser degree , relate myself with the movie (well if everyone honestly look inside heart there is some feelings at some extent).
When I watched closer I could not relate to the movie, and I did not like it.
But KANK touched my nerve and made me painful, because of its Indian background, characters and circumstances.
If the target audiance was ‘more westernised individual’ then why big stars of Indian cinema were selected, one could find many talented actors in USA, like Gurpreet Chadda does for her movies.
I say that if movies made on same subject, they will be made suitable to the targated audiance. For example watch Closer, it has same subject, but you will not be able watch with the family(assuming you are an ordinary Indian, with Indian family and living in India) . For the targeted audaince of Closer, these may be common but not suitable for the Indian environment.
Same happens at some degree with KANK, as you expressed appropriately (which I wanted to express), is bit of westernised, otherwise it would be closer to my heart.
Anyway, thanks Rani for wonderful conversation, no hard feelings, please do come back for lively participation.
Umm.. Rani I was wondering, if you are Rani M….. lol just kidding
August 18, 2006 at 8:31 pm
I think this is the biggest mistake made by SRK and Karan Johar. SRK, do something good or else get out!!
August 18, 2006 at 11:57 pm
Lol, it’s great reading JV and Rani’s views, you guys really know how to argue!
Ashwani, i believe SRK did OK in this movie - a good mile better then the other lacklustre actors and actresses present in the movie. When you look at Abishek’s acting, one can easily tell that is but a quarter of his usual self. I also believe that we didn’t even see a shadow of the Priety of Kal Ho Na Ho. I think that the fact that we’re used to such a high quality of acting from SRK and the usual huge successes of his movies makes us make a direct relationship between the two. Here KANK wasn’t extroadinary so we take it that SRK wasn’t top notch however if you analyse his acting you’ll notice it wasn’t much different from his acting level in other movies.
August 19, 2006 at 3:21 pm
Thanks MM, I am glad you found it entertaining
I will not give any opinion about SRK, I have no particular liking about him. I think his problem is that he is ‘SRK’ in every character irrespecitve of the story’s demand(few exceptions are there). Whereas Hritik or Big B and other great actor dissolve themselves in the character.
August 21, 2006 at 5:01 pm
The movie is a big disaster as far as the message it purports to the Indian audience. I am surprised that it is not already banned. There was I believe an overhype in the very first week with all the fudged yellow journalism. Taran Aadarsh we know how much you have been paid to speak volumes about such a crappy movie. Maybe KJ realized after the first screeneing that the movie will not make it to Box office highs without the backign of media so he pumped a lot of green paper to India FM and TOI to exhalt this rubbish product. Anyhow I am gald that I have only seen 1 hour of this trash on DVD without spending my valuable 10 STG on cinema.
August 21, 2006 at 5:51 pm
You are right there. Further, I generally find reviews of commercial websites in favour of movies. Neutral reviews are hard to find. But nowadays bloggers seem to speak their mind loudly through their blogs and that is good thing
August 21, 2006 at 7:59 pm
i m a londoner n i wish i cud tell kjo dat not all nris r stupid n pathetic like srk n rani’s characters. although v live in england, it doesnt mean dat we dont hev/follow our traditional indian culture. v r still indian at heart so kjo, next time u make a movie, plz dont make a movie on nris n make yourself look even more pathetic n stupid.
August 21, 2006 at 9:07 pm
Well said, Bhavika.
August 26, 2006 at 4:33 pm
Yup bang on
August 28, 2006 at 12:45 pm
The movie is controversial..though,many can relate to the characters..no one as bold as the characters played by rani and sharukh will leave their spouses who love them and are willing to leave an opportunity or anything or anyone for them. Your own insecurities cannot make you happy in any relationship. Karan Johar makes it seem like if a person with insecurities marries another with insecurities then it will work out…If there were a Part 2 of this movie, and Rani’s character started earning more than Sharukh’s Dev then another divorce is not far…a person will only leave his/her spouse when there can be no understanding or a solution..the couple has to agree to not agree for a seperation to happen and to move on…
A movie like Silsila was more practical…from both western and eastern standards (these days with education and marriage counseling around)
Overall, the movie does make you think and gives mixed feeling…
August 29, 2006 at 7:27 am
Ive just returned home from watching KANK - and my first thought was to visit google n enter ‘KANK goes wrong’- and here i end up with you guys and your views… Many of which i must add that i agree with…
Lets start with the title - Kabhi alvida naa kehna… Besides the fancy connotation of “we should never say goodbye” because u may never meet again, it has no real relevance to the story…
Karan Johar has made an incoherant film, with his usual emotions but without the correct treatments… At times theres great emotions running wild, n then suddenly theres a dramatic loss… The BUILD UP to certain events did not make sense…
I’m not one to make comparisions being a film maker myself, however, maybe Karan was a 2 hit wonder - kuch kuch n k3g -
What many of you guys have forgotten is that his 3rd film was infact directed by ‘NIKHIL ADVANI’ - A greatly talented guy… Kal ho naa ho is a film i could quite easily watch every so often and still feel somewhat attached to the emotions that the film carries…
KANK on the other hand is a film i dont think i could sit through ever again…
Long, over stretched and vague it may be a mature subject but is far from a mature film… The big budget is its selling point - fancy makeup, clothes, sets, new york etc etc…
i say no more…
Signing out… Surinder Singh
August 29, 2006 at 10:21 am
Thanks for you input Harleen and Surinder. I just read the interview of Karan Johar in Filmfare(?) before the launching of KANK. He admitted being nervous/tense as this was first movie where he was without the support of his father, Yash Johar. Unnecssary scenes and overbudget can be attributed to this fact, ortherwise the film could be moving instead of mess.
August 30, 2006 at 1:38 pm
Hey Karan…… U have just done the fanatastic Job…CONGRATULATIONS….KEEP IT UP…. Each and every part of yr movie is so tutorial that no one can take out any mistake OUT OF this…. Your movie is in real sense a tutorial movie… from which person can learn many many things….u will save many
many marriages from breaking n wish u good luck for next movie….Thanx for giving us such a lovely movie….U r d Best….
September 6, 2006 at 2:41 am
thank you for you karan johah pour tes films and fantastic and shahrukh khan.
September 9, 2006 at 1:19 am
LE FILM KABHI ALVIDA C EST UNE B ONNE HESTOIR MAIS LE REALISATEUR KARAN A DU TERMINER L HESTOIR EN TROUVENT UNE BONNE ENTENTE ENTRE LE COUPLE POUR NE PAS DETRUIRE UNE RELATION QUI A DURE UNE LONGUE VIE.
D APRES MOI .MAIS CHACUN PEUT DONNER SON AVIS.
SHAHRUKH KHAN EST UN ACTEUR EXTRAORDINAIRE - MONA MOROCCO
September 13, 2006 at 7:05 am
Well, having been there recently, except that I was in Priety’s shoes and “Rani” was a trusted and very close friend and her ex-my ex ( now her current…confusing isn’t it:)) were close frinds too, and with three childrenn’s emotinal well being compromised( two of mine, one of hers), I find KANK quite immature. The child, who happens to be the worst victim of selfish adult decisions, was not even touched on!!! And to top it all, the film ended on a note of almost justifying the betrayers’ action. Well, folks, it ain’t that simple, the fall ain’t that soft.
September 27, 2006 at 9:20 am
Horrible moral of a story. I’m sorry. However it was filmed nicely.
September 27, 2006 at 6:29 pm
Btdt, thanks for the first hand expereince. You summed up well.
Sabbasi, I agree with you. Extravagant budged could easily do this, but again that is not the point
December 25, 2006 at 7:15 am
….
it’s being criticized as a justification for the “traitors’” love ..
but ..
isn’t this story just trying to explain from their point of view? …….
remember .. at the end of the day ..
it’s really just their experience ..
December 25, 2006 at 11:10 am
Shireen , then why the title “Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna”? Never say good bye to your partner or your lover?
I would not call them traitor even, they loved someone else then their partner and left the partner, but even again movie fails miserably to explain the traitor’s move.
and remember.. it really just my experience of the movie…
February 2, 2007 at 11:27 pm
I really like the movie and SRKis the best actor ever!
July 24, 2007 at 2:57 am
hi ,
iyo u look so ugly and ur acting is not suits on ur character
July 30, 2007 at 8:59 am
you guys are just upset because this is what goes on in the real world.. and you didn’t expect it just because it’s an indian moviee