Love Express

Indian Express Ratings:*1/2

This is a bargain basement combo of ‘Jab We Met’ and ‘Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge’,in which a boy and a girl are betrothed,placed on a train,and sent to Mumbai to wed,accompanied by families from ‘both sides’. In the first ten minutes,we discover neither the girl nor boy want to marry: she has a boyfriend tucked away somewhere,he thinks ‘arranged marriages’ suck. Cue to,first,the ‘nonk jhonk’,then the cosying up,all within a coupe meant for a couple. Also to the ‘tu-tu-main-main’ between the mummyjis and daddyjis and the baraatis and gharaatis,and the papering over of cracks by the wise old dadaji ( Puri).   There’s also a warring former boy friend-girl friend who are destined to leave the ‘taqraar’,and head towards ‘pyaar’. And a young sardar,dressed fully in yellow,( even his patka is colour-ordinated) who is meant to keep us in splits.

Subhash Ghai,whose production this is,is doing an admirable thing by encouraging features from rank newcomers,and putting them out in theatres. Only it shouldn’t feel quite as learning-on-the-job as this one,which,at best,the film comes off like a nice,bland sit com.

shubhra.gupta@expressindia.com