London Dreams though predictable and lacking in pace is a visually mesmerizing musical treat.

Vipul Shah’s London Dreams reunites Salman Khan and Ajay Devgn after almost a decade of their gut-wrenching performance in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. Apart from that, the music hailed as the best of Shankar-Ehsaan and Loy as of yet too are unable to lift the predictable storyline and pace of the film.

Arjun (Ajay Devgn) dreams of becoming a famous and successful singer. Circumstances bring him to London where he pursues his dream further, on his own will and might. He meets music enthusiasts and brothers Wasim (Rannvijay) and Zoheb (Aditya Roy Kapoor) along with dancer Priya (Asin) to form their band London Dreams. After a contract with a major music company he returns to India to meet his boisterous childhood friend Mannu (Salman Khan) who he brings back to London to become a part of his band. Things take an ugly turn when the naturally gifted entertainer Mannu begins to hog all the limelight along with grabbing the attention of Arjun’s secret desire Priya.

The film takes a predictable turn right from the word go. The jealousy angle and will to destroy the other is a time and again used method which Vipul only highlights with magnificent visuals and cinematographic value. The slow pace of the film too deters the excitement of the viewer.

Ajay Devgn is perfectly cast as the solemn dream seeker Arjun. His transition from the humble achiever to the conniving brute leaves you in awe. His self-flagellation scenes, when he whips himself to control his desire for Priya and the hurt he causes Mannu could give anybody the chills. However its Salman who steals the show in the end, no pun intended. He redeems himself with his role of the philandering village bumpkin Mannu and his dialogues could probably be the best in the film. His camaraderie with Ajay in the first half looks truly genuine and chemistry with Asin is one of the highlights in the film as well. His Punjabi dialect to the innumerous number of times he swears 'Bhen De Takke' is a relief from Ajay’s emotional storytelling. Asin hasn’t been used to her full potential as she was in Ghajini and is just a good pair of tights in the film. She doesn’t have much scope let alone a song in the film. Aditya shines in the first half while Rannvijay in the second. They do their little bit in their supporting roles. Om Puri, Manoj Pahwa do justice to their parts.

Apart from the predictable storyline, the biggest downfall of the movie might be the unconvincing rocker act of the two main leads. How in the world does a band with 40 year olds with gypsy Hindi rock music create a fan base out of 90,000 English people in a packed Wembley stadium in a span of six months? Its understandable if the band becomes a hit with the British Indian community in London but white woman drooling on the sight of Ajay, please gimme a break! Also when they lip-synch the songs its like those clumsily sub-titled Chinese movies when the dialogue appears ten minutes after the actors have had their say. In Rock On! while its true that Farhan did sing his songs, he along with Arjun went with the flow of the music and not once did their performances look like an act of buffoonery.

With that said, the two and a half stars undoubtedly go to the enchanting cinematography, direction, soulful music and Salman. Pretty much all the songs right from Barso Re, Khanabadosh, Tapkey Masti have your feet tapping. Truly a cinematic experience with its high production value and beautifully shot locales, Vipul known for his grandeur style outdoes himself with London Dreams. Only if he’d pay more attention to the script and minor but striking details, the film would have been a wholesome viewing experience indeed.


Samiya Shakir/Hill Road Media