| Powered by: Chakpak.com | Lets Dance |
Director: Aarif Sheikh
Cast: Gayatri Patel, Ajai Chowdhary, Aquib Afzal, Abhaas Yadav
Dance like no one’s watching! Perhaps the makers took the saying a bit too seriously (and in the wrong context) while producing this dance-drama. National Award winning editor Aarif Shaikh, unfortunately, isn’t able to keep either the dance crisp or drama concise in his directorial debut, going overboard with both.
Suhaani (Gayatri Patel) goes gyrating around Lokhandwala lanes a la Antra Mali of Naach . Passionate about dancing, she runs a choreography-class without monetary aspirations and hopes to make it big one day. As she somersaults in her drawing room in frustrating fury, downside dhabewala Neil (Ajai Chowdhary) gazes at her a la Shah Rukh Khan of Dil To Pagal Hai . Alas his helping hand is only restricted till watermelon juice.
Enter RJ (Aquib Afzal) who launches Suhaani as a choreographer in his next music video, tweaking the romance into Rangeela mode. But as he attempts dance pe chance through his indecent advances, Suhaani retracts. And so does her dream of rehabilitating a group of drug-peddling kids through a dance video.
The film is high on dance but low on emotional connect. There’s a dance at the drop of a hat and then a song at the blink of an eye. The direction appears corny at several instances like when the couple fancies Nasik dhol dancers in background as cupid strikes. The music isn’t bad but lacks soul. The songs stay with you till their runtime after which there’s no recall value. The writing is conventional and some characterizations are even flawed like RJ who is principled at the start but is shown a philanderer soon after. The tempo picks up only in the final reels but the climax is long-drawn-out.
Debutante Gayatri Patel is a flexibly fabulous dancer and a confident actress but doesn’t rise above the tacky script. Her face bears resemblance to actress Rimi Sen while anatomy reminds of Antra Mali from Naach . Aquib Afzal is a cross between Vivek Oberoi and Rajat Bedi in looks and has a strong hangover of the former in his performance. Ajai Chowdhary has rehearsed expressions. Abhaas Yadav as the leader of the street kid gang exudes fake attitude but flawless dancing flair. Sugandha Garg (of Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na fame) is wasted in an inconsequential role.
