Aap Jaisa Koi Review: R Madhavan And Fatima Sana Shaikh Are Remarkable In This Feminist Love Story
Aap Jaisa Koi Movie Review: What a great time for urban rom-com fans! There's Metro In Dino running in cinemas. You could do a movie triathlon with Aap Jaisa Koi and Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan this week. And a few days later, Param Sundari will hit the screens. What a breath of fresh air! But the one film that stands out from this lot is Aap Jaisa Koi. Why you ask? It's themed on the complex and cinematically lesser explored institution of arranged marriages, albeit through a pastel-tinted pair of lenses.
And much like Nazia Hassan's iconic Aap Jaisa Koi picturised on the timeless Zeenat Aman, this eponymous film too celebrates the essence of womanhood, her choices and sensuality and beautifully expresses her desires and infatuations. Director Vivek Soni goes back to his comfort zone – arranged/assisted marriages – a theme he sublimely portrayed in his debut film, Meenakshi Sundareshwar. But unlike the Sanya Malhotra and Abhimanyu Dassani starrer that delved deep into the upheavals of a long-distance marriage, this one circumnavigates around the events and the pangs leading up to a marriage.
The action too shifts from Madurai to Kolkata-Jamshedpur. But enough of the comparisons! Aap Jaisa Koi is its own film and revolves around Shrirenu Tripathy and Madhu Bose. Shrirenu, fondly referred to as Shri, is a Sanskrit teacher at a local school in Jamshedpur. He's a 42-year-old virgin (yes, it's important that we mention this), who believes that he's bearing the brunt of a curse inflicted on him by his schoolmate Rakhi when he proposed to her. Back in the day, she cursed him that he would never get married and/or have sex.
But his sister-in-law Kusum is hell-bent on finding the right match for him and reprimands him for stating his true age in his biodata as that may repel women. This is when Joy, their neighbour, brings them a prospective match in the form of Madhu from Kolkata. Madhu, 32, is Joy's niece and is a French teacher at a language institute. The shy and introverted Shri drives down to Kolkata to meet her. Madhu, unlike most women he has met, doesn't judge him for his looks or age and they realise that they do have a lot in common.
Within a few weeks, their marriage gets fixed but a strange event on the day of their engagement breaks all hell loose and it has got to do with a sex-chat app called Aap Jaisa Koi. Through what happens next, Vivek manages to shed the spotlight on the messiness of man-woman relationships, women's desires, misogyny, masculine hypocrisy, morality, feminism, extramarital affairs, gender roles and most importantly, love against a backdrop of pastel-hued Kolkata, piano symphonies, sitar melodies and a whole lot of pauses and silences pregnant with emotions left unsaid.
At 1 hour 55 minutes, Aap Jaisa Koi progresses at a meandering, languorous pace. It almost feels like poetry in motion. Certain vignettes are so breath-taking (or should we say 'époustouflant'?) and tender that you may feel like they've been robbed straight off a fancy art gallery. There's a vintage like charm looming large over the narrative. The duo bonds over Kishore Kumar, Ashok Kumar and Madhubala and talk about Jean-Paul Sartre and Kalidas and make the iconic Coffee House their date spot. The transition in the use of colours from muted earthy tones when capturing Shri's life to pastel shades once Madhu comes into the picture speaks volumes.
Aap Jaisa Koi doesn't make lofty promises. Neither does it attempt to be something it's not. It's simple, minimal and subtle. And kudos to Vivek for looking at the narrative through a feminine lens, which is something that Meenakshi Sundareshwar can also boast about! The tone and tenor of the story is feministic without making it too didactic. Neither are there no preachy monologues nor high-concept formulas here. Vivek chooses to show more and tell less. He largely also manages to let go of Bengali stereotypes while portraying Madhu's art and culture-oriented family.
Justin Prabhakaran and Rochak Kohli also deserve credit for their melodic compositions that string together some tender moments filled with hope and sometimes, even heartbreak. Jab Tu Sajan and Mila Tujhe particularly stand out as they capture the innocent sweetness of a blossoming romance. The screenplay is further elevated by some strong performances. R Madhavan as Shri reins it in and downplays his emotions, often reminding you of his Manu from Tanu Weds Manu. He lets his eyes do a lot of talking and he shares a magnificent chemistry with Fatima Sana Shaikh.
As Madhu, Fatima – draped in some stunning organza sarees – is independent and silently feisty and she walks this interesting paradox with maturity. Ayesha Raza and Manish Chaudhary too deserve a special mention. They make for an interesting and relevant sub-plot with Ayesha essaying the role of Kusum, a woman struggling to find her own identity after 28 years of marriage. Her performance will tug at your heartstrings. It's Namit Das, however, who suffers due to an under-cooked character. If anything, it gets reduced to the trope of a Hindi film hero's funny and immature best friend.
If Sanya as Meenakshi was as delicate as a fresh jasmine, Fatima as Madhu is a pressing jasmine, an epitome of resilience in a world that doesn't think twice before tossing you into scrap if you don't fit into their idea of a flower. And if you're a lover of old school love and Kolkata, Aap Jaisa Koi is for you. It's a sweet little gem that will stay back with you. It's also not every day that you get to watch a film with age-appropriate casting. And even through its vintage spark, Aap Jaisa Koi remains a new-age film with a liberal mind and uninhibited voice. Sometimes, less is more and this fairly charming love story is a reminder of the same.
First Published:
July 11, 2025, 12:33 IST
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