Movie Review: Aashayein – Hope Floats for This Movie

Posted by admin on Aug 28th, 2010 | 0 comments

Nagesh Kukunoor’s Aashayein may have been stuck for release for 2 years but if the film is good and is not really outdated, it can still be appreciated. The movie has a simple story but what make it endearing is the script and the performance of John Abraham

Story of Aashayein: Chain smoking Rahul is in for good luck and extreme bad luck. The day he wins a fortune at the lottery, he comes to know that he is suffering from terminal lung cancer. Though he has a live-in girlfriend (Sonal Sehgal) who wants to marry him and live-in with him, Rahul has left her in his mind, he is lost in a sense of self-pity. Though he decides to leave his girlfriend, he decides to gift her his winnings before heading for a solitary existence.

Rahul lands at a hospital for the terminally ill and meets with the patients there. There is an older man Parthasarthi (Girish Karnad) who cannot speak, an ex prostitute Madhu (Farida Jalal) who is infected with HIV virus, a 17 year old cancer patient called Padma (Anaitha Nair) who has a crush on Rahul and a little boy called Govinda (Ashwin Chitale) who loves comic books. We are in for some light hearted, funny scenes where Rahul lives his life to the fullest with the help of these people.

What works for Aashayein: Nagesh Kukunoor shows his deft treatment again as he did in movies like Iqbal and Dor. Though the movie may not be technically sound, it is visually appealing thanks to the cinematographer Sudeep Chatterjee.

What does not work for Aashayein: None of the scenes are compelling, the dialogues and the screenplay is not heart-tugging enough. What may have looked good on paper, looks like an amateur effort on the screen. The background score also leaves a lot to be desired.

Performances in Aashayein: John Abraham’s best performance in his career is undoubtedly in Aashayein. In the first half, you may well be watching the usual John with his handsome look, trade-mark smile and his suave appeal but the second half has a measured, engaging performance, so much that you forget that you are watching John Abraham in the film. The fact that John lost a lot of weight to get the right look for the film definitely adds to the impact

Conclusion: A strictly average movie, John Abraham’s performance gives it an extra rating

Rating: **1/2 (above average)