Tu Aashiqui Review: A Mixture Of Long Forgotten Hindi Movie Plots

Show Title: Tu Aashiqui

Channel: Colors

Timings: Monday to Friday 7 pm

Tu Aashiqui starring Jannat Zubair Rahmani and Ritvik Arora is Color’s latest show which is produced by Mahesh Bhatt. The show is a tragic love story and is inspired by Aashiqui 2. The show also stars Gauri Pradhan and Rahil Azam in pivotal roles. I saw the first episode of this ‘young love’ show and here is the first episode written update and its first impression.

 

Tu Aashiqui (2017)

Episode 1

20 September 2015, rock star, Ahaan (Ritvik Arora) is singing to a packed stadium. (Try not to look surprised by Ahaan’s hardcore dance moves while he’s singing on stage. TV serial heroes can sing even in their sleep. Dancing and singing at the same time is no big deal for them.) As he sings, a girl from the audience manages to come onto the stage and kiss and hug Ahaan. As he continues performing. Someone throws a flower at him which turns to a salt shaker and we move fast forward to 20 September 2017 and see Ahaan singing at a pub.

At the pub, Ahaan sings the same song as a group of guys tease him from their table. Ahaan glares at them but refrains from reacting. Two girls, walk up to him and click a selfie with him as he happily smiles for them. The boys continue to call him names and try to provoke him but he ignores it all. After the performance, Ahaan and his band are on their way home when they are confronted by the same group of boys who bullied Ahaan in the restaurant. One of the boys walks up to Ahaan and orders him to sing. Ahaan politely tells him that his performance is over and that he can come to see him sing tomorrow. The boy, however, looks annoyed and throws a bunch of notes at Ahaan and orders him to sing. Ahaan looks unfazed and refuses to sing. Enraged, the boy pulls out a gun and threatens to shoot if Ahaan declines him again. Ahaan’s bandmates quiver begging to be left alone but Ahaan instead walks fearlessly towards the boy and pins the barrel to his forehead. Ahaan’s friends beg him to let go and leave but he only urges the boy to shoot. We then hear a gunshot.

Cut to, Ahaan’s house, preparations for the music launch of a new movie is in full swing. Ahaan’s father, Manav Dhanrajgir (Sachin Sharma) looks for him. Ahaan’s mother, Aparna tells Manav that he must be performing at the club. Manav sneers that Ahaan playing at a club cannot be termed as a ‘performance’ as it is only an insult to his illustrious family. Just then, Ahaan’s sister rushes to her mother showing a news item about Ahaan being arrested once again. This time he seems to be arrested on serious charges of possessing a gun and shooting in public space. Aparna pleads Manav to bail their son out and he flatly refuses saying that Ahaan deserves to spend a night in the police lockup. Aparna then says that even if he refuses to go she will go get him bail and she leaves.

In the police station, Ahaan happily agrees to click selfies with fellow prisoners and the police constables. One of the constables tells Ahaan that he may be a singer but today he has done something really heroic and Ahaan only smiles back at him.

Just then, his father arrives with his lawyer at the police station and looks furious on seeing Ahaan click pictures inside a jail. Ahaan wryly states that he can go back home as he need not go through the trouble of getting him out on a bail. Manav then sneers that Ahaan lost his stardom because of his righteous nature and poor attitude. He then leaves in a huff without bailing Ahaan out.

Ahaan’s friend freaks out worrying for him and Ahaan coolly tells him that his bade papa will get him out within ten seconds. That very instant the police phone buzzes and the inspector commands the constable to get Ahaan out.

Ahaan stands near the seaside as his friend leaves to get his car for him. It starts pouring and as Ahaan turns to leave, a car speeds past him splashing muck on him. He screams at the driver for his reckless driving and the car comes to a halt. The car’s door opens and a girl is pushed out. The girl starts walking away from the car and stumbles over her sandal as Ahaan keeps her from falling. Ahaan then gazes into her eyes and looks totally mesmerised by her. (Geez, what kinda look is that? He looks more like a creep than a smitten young boy.)

The girl then manages to get on her feet and looks befuddled as Ahaan continues to gaze at her. The car driver blows the horn and the girl looks terrified and turns to return but Ahaan grabs her wrist and stops her from going. The girl looks even more terrified and struggles before freeing herself from Ahaan’s grip. 

As she frees her hand, she breaks her bangles and Ahaan hangs onto the broken piece of bangle as he sees her return to the car and moves out of sight. Ahaan’s friend arrives with his car and Ahaan tells him how ill-mannered the car driver must be to push a girl out of the car. He adds that the girl too seemed weird to return to the car which she was thrown out of. We then see the girl’s backstory as we rewind a few hours back.

Pankti (Jannat Zubair Rahmani) arrives all decked up before the man we now know as JD (Rahil Azam). The farmhouse is decorated and we see a cake with ‘Happy Anniversary’ written over it. JD looks pleased to see Pankti dressed up for him. He then orders her to jump into the pool.

She refuses saying that she cannot swim. He says she need not worry as he knows how to save a life. But she does not budge. She says she is afraid of dying because of which she is still in a relationship with him. Had that not been the case, she would have ensured to free herself from him long back. He mocks her for calls their arrangement as ‘relationship’. He rudely reminds her that they are not a couple and that they are celebrating the anniversary of the day he ‘bought’ her from her mother for his enjoyment. He once again orders her to jump into the pool but she puts her foot down.

Enraged, he drags to his car and drives on. He stops at the seaside and tells her that she dared to insult him in private which is why he will insult her in public so he kicks her out of his car and she falls in a puddle. Humiliated, she starts walking away from the car and stumbles as Ahaan holds her to keep her from falling. She unwillingly returns to the car where JD notices that she is completely drenched so he deliberately reduces the temperature of the AC so she starts to shiver and he repeats ‘Happy One Year Anniversary’ to her. (Geez, Rahil Azam sound so much like Arbaaz Khan. He even resembles him slightly. Was he cast in this role because of this? I wonder.)

At the Dhanrajgir’s residence, reporters hound Manav asking him about Ahaan and just then Ahaan arrives soaking wet because of the rain. The reporters rush to him with a barrage of questions that annoy him. However, they quit pestering him for answers as Jayant Dhanrajgir, the head of the music label Jai Mata Di arrives with his wife. The reporters rush to the couple and ask them the secret to their perfect marriage and Ahaan answers that it is their love, trust and loyalty for each other that makes them the perfect couple. He says that seeing them so much in love generates more trust in marriage. Ahaan then hugs his bade papa tightly and we see that his bade papa is Pankti’s tormentor JD.

JD then shakes Ahaan’s hands and he flinches in pain. JD notices the scar on his palm and tells him to be careful as such wounds cause pain later on in life. But Ahaan says that some wounds never cause any pain but only leave sweet memories of it.

First Episode First Impression

Woah! Though the ending was surprising, the show overall was tooooooooooooooo melodramatic. The first episode did not look like a ‘first episode’ at all. It had so much of conflict and turmoil that I felt I was watching the 50^th episode. It is good that the central characters and their dynamics were clearly revealed within the first 30 minutes but for me, it got a little too much. The struggles of the main leads in the first episode hint at much more agony and tears in the following episodes. Am I prepared for more pain? I don’t think so.

What looked nice?

The main twist of the show was mind-blowing. I watched the show without reading its story. The only thing I knew about it was that it is about a girl who is sold to a rich man by her mother and she meets a young boy who falls in love with her and fights for her. So, when the main twist of JD being Ahaan’s bade papa was revealed, I stared at my screen with my jaw touching the floor. I seriously did not see that coming. I liked it, really liked it.

What I liked most about the first episode is its direction. This first episode was beautifully directed. I especially liked JD’s first scene where the camera pans in on him from bottom to top and just as we are about to see his face, he goes out of focus. We see him clearly from Pankti’s angle when he turns to look at her. Similarly, when Jayant Dhanrajgir is being introduced he is out of focus, even as the camera focused on his wife’s face. We see him only after Ahaan praises him and pulls him into in a warm hug. That was some good work. Applause!!

What did not look nice?

Lead hero, Ritvik Arora has beautiful eyes but when it comes to acting, I think he needs to work (a lot) on that. For instance, take the jail scene, where Ahaan’s father comes to bail him out but ends up arguing with him. Actor Sachin Sharma does a good job deriding his son but Ritvik’s poor performance ruined the scene. It looked like he was only delivering dialogues that he memorised because his face showed no emotion. Sorry, but this guy needs to improve a lot if he has to stand before actors like Rahil Azam and Gauri Pradhan.

The storyline looks like a mix of Agni Sakshi, Daraar (Sleeping with the Enemy), Aashiqui 2 and Abhimaan. (Why Abhimaan? Well, you will know as the story progresses.) I am bored of seeing the same recycled content on TV. The show looks good presentation-wise but the content is too repetitive. I had seen a scarier version of Daraar in a show named Dil Se Di Dua… Saubhagyavati Bhava? So, this sadist, psychotic man abusing a girl is not a new concept on TV. Neither is a boy going against his family to rescue a damsel in distress a novel concept. The only thing I find interesting is the fact that Pankti is mistress to Ahaan’s uncle who he loves and trusts more than his own father. This family angle twists the storyline slightly which raises intrigue. Other than that I see nothing interesting in this show.

Doesn’t the show title sound incomplete? I won’t be surprised if next we hear of a show title “Tu Hain” or “Tu Pyar” or “Tu Dil” or even better “Tu Meri”. Hehehe. Kuch bhi naam bana dete hain aaj kal.

 

If you have not watched movies like Sleeping with the Enemy and Aashiqui 2 then you might enjoy this show as it looks like a good budget show. If you have seen the mentioned movies and liked them, then you might enjoy watching this televised mash of the movies. But if you did not enjoy those movies then I doubt you will enjoy this show. 

 

 

You can watch the show online on Voot.com.

 

Image Courtesy: Viacom 18, Voot.com

 

Also Read: