Sometimes the greatest journey is the distance between two people – the tagline of the movie itself puts me in daze. Dr. Ajay Mehra (Ajay Devgan) is a psychiatrist consultant, who when on a cruise tour, meets and falls in love at first sight with a waitress Piya (Kajol). Unfortunately for him Piya is not that easy to get. After alot of wooing, Piya finally gives in to his charm, and they settle down for a happy married life. But then Piya is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. It is from here that the movie becomes a special and not an ordinary run of the mill movie. What makes it different is that the movie not only shows the trials faced by an Alzheimer’s patient, but also the tribulations faced by the people around her. A beautiful and meaningful story of love is what U Me Aur Hum is all about.

Kajol has given one of her best performances till date. She always outdoes herself, and I think that is what makes her one of the finest actors in Bollywood. Ajay Devgan has played the role so realistically that it is difficult to say where Ajay Mehra (Ajay Devgan’s character) ends and Ajay Devgan starts. This movie has just made the already known fact more strong, that Ajay Devgan surely is one of the most versatile actors. The supporting actors namely Sumeet Raghavan, Karan Khanna, Divya Dutta, Isha Sharvani and Sachin Khedekar have played their roles with utmost ease and each have done justice to their roles.

Music by Vishal Bharadwaj is situational, and that makes it very special. Lyrics by Munna Dhiman is to look out for, because it is very different. The song that truly stands out is the title track, both musically and lyrically.

Ajay Devgan has made his directorial debut with U Me Aur Hum. And I must say, he has done an excellent job. For any director, it is easy to make an Art/Intellectual movie flawless, but to make a bollywood commercial movie flawless is indeed a very difficult job, and Ajay Devgan has surpassed all such expectations. Ajay Devgan has proved that he is not only a great actor, but an equally superb director.

Some might say that the movie is on similar lines as the hollywood flick THE NOTEBOOK, and that if you have seen THE NOTEBOOK, U Me Aur Hum might not be that great. But trust me, it is only after watching U Me Aur Hum will you understand that these two movies are way too different.

So even if you have watched THE NOTEBOOK, do go for this movie, because trust me, you will not regret it. All in all, I would say that this is a movie that will be remembered and will give you chills, long after you have stepped out of the cinema theatre.

Now, not only am I left feeling a bit sympathetic, I’m also more than a bit nostalgic, thanks to that Priyatama reference. If I ever wind up catching Krazzy4, I’m sure I’ll cut it (and Roshan) some slack if only coz I’ll be instantly reminded of KK’s “Koi Roko Na” (a song I used to love back in the day and haven’t heard for some years now).

Tambi Dude: But Paruthi Veeran was such an exception. Have you seen the films Priya Mani has done after that?

the mad momma: That’s an interesting point, though I feel Kajol’s definitely more cast-able across a range of (commercial) roles than Preity Zinta. The latter’s good in only a particular kind of role, and she’s selected her films well to showcase just that aspect. It’ll be interesting to see how she does in The Last Lear, for instance, which looks like a departure.

Suchi: Ah, that was such an excellent rant. Thanks much for the link. It’s seriously such a shame that we’re seeing Genelia being lauded so much for her peformance in SS. I mean, she looks sweet and she looks the part, sure, but if you’re not conviced that she even knows what she’s mouthing in the film, what are we taking about, really?

I do like Baradwaj’s view of Kajol being a good “commercial film actress”. Many of our commercial movies, whether Hindi or Tamil, are simply not that demanding in the acting sense. You can easily learn the overdone hand-gestures, dramatic expressions and cliched dialog-delivery style and not have to bring it all together with something more.

I do agree that lip-syncing detracts from whatever acting ability non-Tamil actresses may have–I’ll point here to Blogeswari’s excellent rant on dubbing.
But that does not excuse Jyothika’s standard 5-expression menu and her squeaky, neurotic dubbing voice. Mozhi was an almost-there film, spoilt by the poor acting of both the leads.

Mad Momma’s point about looks versus acting is interesting. But-but-but I think there might be many examples to the contrary. For example, Shabana Azmi, Madhuri. Also, Nandita Das and Kajol have always been seen as pretty if not beautiful. Another way to look at it would be, that, in the absence of conventional looks, these actresses try that much harder.

i dont think a priyanka chopra or a preity zinta is any less of an actress than kajol.

but she will always be called a good actress because her movies are hits despite her weight, complexion and unshaped eyebrows!

almost a consolation prize because she isnt stunning.

that said, i’ve always enjoyed her movies. sorry to have hijacked the thread Brangan

But as far as I can see, she is a want-to-express-feelings?-will-contort-face types.(ie) Jyothika types
Maybe, point me exceptional performances by her(not involving secondary school contortions of face as substitute for acting) and if I happen to see those , maybe I will change my mind.
Tambi dude, unfortunately, hindi has a better number of actresses who can perform – tamil movies just dont give their heroines chance to perform. When they do, they inflict Mozhi and Jyothika on us (according to popular tamil movie standards, jyothika is the best actress of recent times after Simran(witness the no. of aspiring actresses say i want to be like Jyo and Sim – as if the originals werent enough) – and that should tell you) the kind of standards prevalent here.)

The other aspect of it is the definition of acting.
Simran enjoys her status in TN as an actress of substance because of her performance in movies like priyamanavalae(Yeah, right, I am not joking!). Incidentally, I think Kajol did the hindi equivalent of this and that I think is put up as a sample of her excellence by her fans.

So, Hindi or Tamil, the popular ones on acting stakes enjoy their reputation on some stupid, ordinary performances. Which is sad.

My big problem with hindi heroines is that they are so obsessed with looking good that they don’t act well, unless shaking your butt is considered as acting. Madhuri was barely OK, Juhi was rarely ok

I would not even accept Kajol’s competent commercial actress description. If we do not compartmentalize, then Konkana, Nandita, Kajol, Tabu all are very good actors. I would include Madhuri in this list too, except that she did not get many chances to exhibit her acting skills.

As I already said, I totally agree with what you said about shahrukh. He turns in a strictly decent performance and whole world breaks in applause because he is known for dishing out s**t.

The same is not true for Kajol. She is a known good actress, viewers expect compelling performances from her.
In fact, what Shahrukh achieves in a Chak De or a Swades are merely passing-marks for Kajol.

If she has to be compared to her male counterparts, I would compare her to Ajay or Amir.

I thougt Devgan didnt focus enough on Kajol and he was on screen for longer duration. Wedding song was bad and not required.