Review: Aisha

AISHA (2010)

 

Director: Rajshree Ojha

Script: Devika Bhagat

Starring: Sonam Kapoor, Abhay Deol, Arunoday Singh, Cyrus Sahukar

Plot: The Indian version of "Emma" is Aisha, a girl of the Indian High Society, who spends most of her time putting her friends together to "perfect" couples. But that can't go well for a long time, especially, when Aisha herself falls in love...

Reviewed the 12th of November 2010

I’ve now seen all film versions of „Emma“(at least, these are the only ones I know); The American version “Clueless” (1995), the British Version “Emma” (1996) and now, finally, the Indian one, “Aisha” (2010). Without being biased as an official Bollywood-Fan (after all, it’s not about the country, but about the quality of the movie!), I must say: India made the best job! “Emma” stuck really almost exactly to the literary template, what wouldn’t necessarily have been that bad, if there hadn’t been miserable camera and those endlessly long scenes. I found “Clueless” a 100 times better, the movie has humour, irony and it contributes something own, modern to the theme. But since the 90s, a lot of things have changed… And off course, in “Clueless”, you kind of have that Hollywood-feeling – which is not a bad thing – but I think that “Aisha” just hits the point better, nowadays. True, the houses are huge and sparkly, too, as is Daddy’s credit card, but the flick is still, somehow, sweet and sensitive… You can identify with the characters, all of them. The camera setting is calm and clear, the pictures colourful and… the clothes are luscious – this is the kind of stylist Bollywood needed! “Aisha” is the third movie with Sonam Kapoor, that I’ve seen, and she gets better each time. In “Saawariya” I found her pesky and talentless, in “Delhi-6” I had doubts about how she would master a bigger role, but now, all my doubts have been blown away. Aisha is the perfects role for Sonam (whose personal style I also like very much), and the team seems to have been perfect for showing her talent. It’s all about choosing the right role. As most people know, Abhay Deol has been on my favourite-list since “Dev D”… Every time I’m surprised, how unimpressive he seems to be, when you first see him. Off course it’s not the hardest cinematic challenge to portray this modern Indian Mr. Knightley, but he makes a good job. I’d even say that it couldn’t have been done any better. All the other characters (which were many) can only get positive commentaries from me. I can’t remember all the new names, but really, all of the actors were good – I also liked the fact, that, though the script doesn’t let much room for describing the side characters, you still have the feeling of knowing them… They do not vanish in the background. I really appreciate seeing so many talented new faces – as you know, the latest trend in Bollywood was pairing the big (old) star with the new (young) newcomer. That was kind of witty in RNBDJ, but now it sucks. They somehow did it right with “Aisha”. Off course, the story is a little unworldly and isolated, but that’s what the main character is like, and subconsciously it’s almost a little ironic (as were all Emma film versions – and the book).

Finally, the movie is perfect for a nice evening with the girls (or even alone). If the movie is good for men, I can’t tell, but who came through “SATC”, will experience “Aisha” as a salvation: No Botox. Okay, I like “SATC”… But honestly: “Aisha” is just as good, and at least not that embarrassing.

And now, please: Pounce on the DVD-shelves (slash, Online-Shops)! (At least all the feminine creatures here).

Rating: 6.6

Thank you for reading, 
Mette M. K.