Every week, the very awesome Kiva Ashby gives us her expert take on Bollywood movies.

Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
August 2006
Director: Karan Johar
Starring: Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukherji, Abishek Bachchan and Preity Zinta
Length: 3hr 12min

Short summary: Never say goodbye, that’s the rough English translation of the title and, in my opinion, a very dramatic title that sets you up nicely for a very dramatic film. Karan Johar is well known for pulling on your heart strings and he serves up some serious drama in this film but, I can’t give him all the credit, he has a lot of help from powerhouses Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukherji. Khan plays Dev a star soccer player at the height of his career until a chance meeting with Maya (Mukherji) completely derails his livelihood.

Fast forward a few years and the couple again have a chance meeting in a train station. This sets off an awkward series of events where the two continually run into each other in public places. They start to spend time together on a regular basis even though they are both married. Both couples suffer from the normal marital problems that most couples face. Mayas husband Rishi (Bachchan) is preoccupied with work and doesn’t focus on the growing distance between himself and his wife. Devs wife Rhea (Zinta) also works terribly long hours and doesn’t know how to rectify the imbalance within her own home.

So Maya and Dev eventually fall in love because of their failing marriages and the copious amount of time they spend together griping about their significant others. Of course things don’t go smoothly when they decide to be together. Hearts are broken as well as vows of marriage. I guess you could say that the film had a “happy” ending. But after all the drama it doesn’t make up for the mostly upset feeling that you have throughout.

Never say goodbye may sound like one of those Nicholas Spark romance novels where love always prevails. But don’t be fooled by the sentimental title. This film is way heavier than a simple love story.

Music & Dancing:
**
It wouldn’t be a Karan Johar film if Amitabh Bachchan didn’t get down on the dance floor. And get down on the dance floor he did, with a complete entourage of sexy women who were young enough to be his granddaughters. There was this whole creepy old man vibe to him the entire movie. I don’t want to be ageist but damn Amitabh, it’s time to throw the playboy towel in. Other than that dance sequence, there were no others worth mentioning. It was all very standard love story songs and sappy relationship montages.

Outfits & Wardrobe:
*
The movie takes place in 2006 New York. All of the characters are very wealthy so they wear tons of designer clothing and apply impeccable makeup every day of their lives. This is obviously something that I could never relate to but it also wasn’t significant or entertaining. The movie had no cultural traditions other than a brief wedding at the beginning. Because of this there weren’t any breathtaking outfits to write home about.

Overall rating:
*
As a huge Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukerji fan I had to watch this film. I enjoyed their performances but wouldn’t recommend this unless you’re in the mood for a very serious “love” story. I can’t even say that it was realistic and down to earth. In the end it was just an upsetting story played out by very talented actors.