My perfect breakup and sexy rebound

It started when I was 13 and ended at 25.
Just like any other teen romance that eventually ends when you reach adulthood, I finally closed the Harry Potter chapter of my life. Thank God its over! The characters of the series I grew up with, progressively grew darker and more complex. The movies were the ultimate testimonial  to the once stark moral universe of Harry Potter turning eventually into something increasingly shady with prickly, very confusing questions of good and bad. I m glad Rowling put an to this madness. 

But then, I know I will miss waiting for the new HP book every summer; the anticipation of whats going to happen next, the trivia, or simply comparing whether the movies matched up to my imagination. Crazy is, and always will be, the human heart! When its difficult to stay, its also the hardest to leave. And as the set of Hogwarts started falling apart during the final battle scene, an eerie silence took over the audience. And I felt what they were all feeling. This is the last time when we all shall come together as the connoisseurs, fans, or just dreamers of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. This modern classic gave us something more profound than just a fantasy world. It has let us immerse ourselves in a world of grave danger and relentless evil that is make-believe enough not to bleed into our own messed up Muggle reality. As an adult fan, it was a breathless, compulsive reading, and enthralling cinematic journey for me. And like any other Potter fan, I know that the Master Spell caster(J K Rowling) gave us the full possession of our own power of imagination.

Adieu, my decade old love of magic and spells!
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But every heart (and gut) wrenching breakup needs a great rebound. Zoya Akhtar's Spain odyssey was a tease to the wanderlust in me. Within hours, I was transported from the depressing set of Hogwarts, to the La Tomatina festival in Valencia. Beauty of watching movies back2back! Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara slipped me into the adventure mode, to let things go and let gravity do the rest. Each frame of the movie was charged with high levels of testosterone, friendly banter, romance and the exotic Spain(somebody teach me the Flamenco!). Yes, this is another road movie revolving around 3 men, but this is no Dil Chahta Hain. The movie is more like a poem on reel with all its profound elements. There was the perfect rhythm among the characters fighting their insecurities, fear, letting go of emotional baggage and being free finally. The cast ensemble was brilliant and transitions each of the 3 protagonists goes through, added the iambic meters to this poetry.

Farhan Akhtar did bag most of the witty and pacy dialogues of the movie, but after sometime his "Bagwati" jokes kindda grates the nerves. Hritik looked surprisingly comfortable with his extremely restrained yet lovable character, who had a not-so-surprising transformation(the usual girl effect - brooding bad boy turns Peter-Panish). As for Abhay Deol, nevermind. KJo should cast him in Dostana 2. The Kaif chick was at her best, less scenes and minimal talking. Never liked her so much! And Kalki definitely deserved the "Chudail" alert.

Carlos Catalan's cinematography and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy's music played a brilliant intonation to the movie's poetical rendition. The songs are hummable and Javed Akhtar's profound lyrics is mind blowing. Its an absolute pleasure to listen to the soulful Toh Zinda Ho Tum. My heart feels richer and my soul feels lighter than before. 


But the real hero to me is the script and the positive messages it showcased. This might be no "game-changing" movie but it deals with some of the serious emotional issues faced by the Gen Y. We all seem so burdened and haunted by the ghosts of our pasts, that we have forgotten whats its like to be free and live each moment. In the movie, one of the characters comments on how everything in life is already written. I think its a scary as well as reassuring thought at the same time. Scary because no matter how hard you try, you can't change your fate - shit, gore, happiness, sorrow - everything is included. But its also reassuring to know that there are actually no surprises in life. Everything is planned, we just don't know yet.

Another important aspect of this movie is on how we actually need to get scared while facing our repressed fears and unresolved conflicts. Because being scared lets you know that you are onto something important. I mean, if you are not scared, you are not taking a chance..and if you are not taking a chance, then what the hell you are doing??