Bollywood Review in Conjunction with VUE (With Manish Gajjar)
2 STATES (PG)
Verdict: 3/5
DIRECTOR: Abhishek Verman
STARRING: Arjun Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Amrita Singh, Revathy
Krish (Arjun) and Ananya (Alia) meet at University where romance blossoms.
Krish is a straightforward Punjabi guy whilst Ananya is a spirited Tamil character.
They spend their two years happily living in each other’s rooms and classrooms.
On graduation Ananya gets a job in Chennai whilst Krish returns to Delhi to be with his obsessive, overbearing mother.
Unable to live apart the youngsters decide to get married.
But when their parents meet for the first time sparks fly due to their cross-cultural differences.
Not one to give up that easily Krish and Ananya decide to overcome the hurdles to win their parents’ approval.
The beauty of this rom-com lies in director Verman’s unique way of storytelling.
He proves that a good script and direction is what is needed for a crisp and engaging narrative.
Through Verman’s eyes we don’t see the stars as characters.
Instead they look like people we have known all our lives dragging us into their emotions and conflicts as we become part of them.
As young Bollywood starlet with just three releases in her career to date, Alia is delightful to watch.
She is not scared of experimenting with different roles to show off her acting abilities as proven by her last release Highway.
With a down-to-earth physical appearance which men can relate to at some stage of their lives, Arjun is a revelation.
His emotional scene dealing with his father’s betrayal and volatile behaviour is very moving.
Amrita Singh is excellent as the pompous Punjabi mother.
But Ronit surprises as the disgraced army man whose abusive nature drives his only son away from him.
On the whole 2 States is a breezy romance with Arjun and Alia’s thrilling chemistry working well across the cultural divide.
