A GLOSSY FILM THAT STRAINS CREDULITY

One of my biggest pet peeves with relationship comedies? When directors chicken out and tie everything up with a safe, mushy ending.

- By Manjusha Radhakrishnan

It's cinematic cowardice, plain and simple. Luckily, Aarti S. Bagdi doesn’t take that exit route in Aabeer Gulaal. Without spoiling anything, let’s just say she allows the messiness of love to breathe. The result is a rom-com that’s predictable in a bedtime story kind of way, but still enjoyable enough to keep you chuckling and rooting for its leads.

ARMED WITH PRIVILEGE

We begin with Vaani Kapoor, who plays a Simran-esque daughter straight out of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge — except this Simran is armed with privilege, platinum credit cards, and a healthy dose of rebellion. Her conservative father, convinced he knows best, is already blueprinting her marriage like it’s a corporate merger. Naturally, she pushes back, but not in the quietly-simmering way we're used to. No, this girl is clumsy, impulsive, and often a walking disaster who thinks tantrums are personality traits. Spoilt? Absolutely. Entertaining? Surprisingly, yes.

Here’s where Aabeer Gulaal dials up the unintentional comedy. Once daddy’s money pipeline runs dry, our heroine decides to “make it” in London by reinventing herself as a Bollywood dance teacher. Yes, that’s her big survival plan.