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Movie Name : |
Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga
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Cinema Type : |
Bollywood
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Release Date : |
01-Feb-2019( 5 years, 279 days ago)
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Directed By : |
Shelly Chopra Dhar |
Production House : |
Vidhu Vinod Chopra |
Genre : |
Drama |
Lead Role : |
Anil Kapoor , Sonam Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao
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Rating:3.5/5
Love stories can get quite cliched, but when you talk about new age romance, the conversations can get pretty complex and interesting. 'Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga' ('ELKDTAL') is an unconventional tale of finding love and acceptance. The film employs fair share of stereotypes to tell a modern and relevant story. The fact that it brings a still niche subject like homosexuality, to a mainstream movie, is one of its strengths. Thankfully, the progressive theme and emotional quotient of the movie, help it rise above a screenplay that lacks sheen.
The film starts off with the traditional boy-meets-girl setup, where Sahil finds himself carried away by emotion. A random, but pretty girl, Sweety, grabs his hand and pulls him into a chase. And the boy, as you’d expect, falls in love and sets off on a path to track the girl down and profess his undying love. Most of the film’s first half is spent in setting up this rather old-fashioned portrayal of courtship. The girl’s loveable, but conservative Punjabi family is also pooled into the story as the usual Beeji (Madhumalti Kapoor), Veerji (Abhishek Duhan) and Papaji, Balbir (Anil Kapoor) bring in the quintessential family drama. The film spends a little too much time setting up the deliberate, but misleading track that is in essence, building up to Sweety’s ultimate confession. Once she does come-out and reveal that the romance between the boy and girl won’t materialise, the film too, changes gears.
The second half, while still a bit predictable, engages in a sensitive and beautiful portrayal of a girl feeling trapped by her own emotions. The story’s track of a father coming to terms with the sexuality and the suppressed emotions of his daughter is touching. Though a bit theatrical, 'ELKDTAL' puts forth a progressive and important conversation around personal feelings and the true liberating nature of love. All of this plays out, in the most fun and entertaining fashion, which in a way is the strength of the movie, too.