Ishaqzaade

From creating Hammbaarrr and Nikhil Adoda to Jhoom Barabar Jhoom. From creating Shruti Kakkad and Bittu Sharma to creating Dimpy and her 9 awards. From creating Do Dooni Chaar to now creating Parma and Zoya – Habib Faisal presents Ishaqzaade, a saga echoed by unlucky thousands.

Set against a political background and religious tempers, the story is a potpourri of emotions. In a small town called Almore, it is the love story of two Ishaqzaades- Parma Chauhan (Arjun Kapoor) and Zoya Qureshi (Parineeti Chopra ). It’s about dreams and aspirations, family, how mentality declares boundaries even before geography can and how a simple unsuspecting action like falling in love, can change the course of life.

Zoya Qureshi is not your regular small town girl. She aspires to become an MLA just like her father. Drives a jeep, is well educated, has a mind of her own and does not twitch at gun point.
Parma Chauhan on the other hand, is a crass mouthed, gun in crotch, hot blooded young stem who does what and whoever he pleases.
So when they meet, sparks are bound to fly, but who burns and who simmers? When flames grow and love rebels, somewhere a world burns.

Various entities of this film deserve a pat on their big proud shoulders:

Arjun Kapoor for essaying Parma with honesty. Being Boney Kapoor’s son and a Salman Bhai fan I could easily see him sliding on his two flat feet, amongst the Swiss Alps singing “hey hey…ahh haaa…” (being a YRF production and all) but instead he shares his big introduction scene with two other artists, no drum rolls, no fan blowing hair, or walk in 48 frames, he looks every bit of a non hero.
In fact a very common joke on set was anything that ever looked good on Arjun or for a fleeting second gave you the impression ‘hero’ was immediately disapproved by Habib Faisal. “If you want to become a hero, you’ve signed up for the wrong film” is what he maintained throughout. Ishaqzaade is clearly not a feel good product from Yash Raj.
But after watching the film I think Arjun did get his way. As Parma’s character develops with the flowing screenplay, the audience too will not be able to hold back as he transforms from an uncouth animal to a conscientious lover.
I see myself joining the ‘oh my gosh I wanna marry him’ brigade a few times during the film. Parma’s intense declaration of love for Zoya at the brothel has my head bobbing to the motion of his dialogue as he states “Main tujhe itta pyaar karunga, itta pyaar karunga, itta pyaar karunga, bahut pyaar karunga…” Zoya finally melts and so did I. The second time that happened to me was in the climax, when he talked about ‘chotti Zoya & chotta Parma’ it’s not the dialogue as much as it is the honest to god heartfelt delivery.

While Parma’s character develops from shades of black to grey, Zoya is consistent. She bears the flag of a woman not afraid to love or express it. Habib Faisal years ago in a serial he’d directed had the girl protagonist light the pyre of her father (Lavanya). Back in those days that was radical. With Zoya, he still is. So what makes her a typical bhartiya naari but not so much? She fights like a man but still seeks her father’s approval on marriage, she’ll kiss passionately but without an ounce of coyness draws the line for ‘shaadi ke baad’. Feels the hurt when wronged without playing victim. Many felt that Zoya’s spark was doused as her character transformed into a typical Indian woman who bears the brunt of all evil but still forgives. I’d beg for people to see the difference, she makes a choice to kill, she makes a choice to forgive, and in her own time. I think Zoya depicts the inner fire of an average Indian girl, only the average girl fears to ignite it.

One of my favorite scenes in the movie is in the Chemistry Lab. Amidst life threatening action, they take refuge in the college lab, but once the door shuts and the dialogues unfold I was left mesmerized by the simplicity and naivety of the two characters. As I soaked in the moment, I forgot what was happening five minutes ago. A moment where all you see are two young people with innocent dreams, desires, ambitions - as simple as winning a gold medal in the third academic year. How inconsequential things like a lab, the smell of chemicals can make all your worries disappear even if for a minute. How many times do we have that moment when a small something transports us into lala land? Rare. We’ve forgotten how to scrape through layers of bullshit and truly just live the moment.

An important thing I learnt on this journey was that a film is redirected on the edit table. This time its far more difficult because you have only so much to play with! Aarti Bajaj has been the saving grace behind many scenes that had potential of being nominated for ‘cringe worthy’.

Ok the music, Amit Trivedi. That’s all I have to say. Aafton ke Parindey has a rocker feeler, while Jhalla has a very seventies feel to it. Watching Arjun battle Gauahar in Chokra Jawan makes the video a treat. Zoya's unrest as she falls for an infidel is essayed as a rock ballad in Pareshaan but my favouratist is the title track Ishaqzaade, Kausar Munir ke lyrics se pyaar na hojaye to bolna! Ranjeet Barot’s background score is interestingly different. Too bad it’s not included in the soundtrack DVD.

Saving the best for last is Mr. Hemant Chaturvedi. Ishaqzaade would not have been this beautiful if it wasn’t for this DOP’s aesthetic sense of lighting, Some scenes are so beautifully silhouetted that the light pouring in becomes the main attraction of the scene. It’s unbelievable how he waves his magic wand to make sunlight dance for him. Watch out for the warehouse scene and the love making scene, it’s all real and natural.

Habib Faisal is amongst the rare species of ‘real writers’ and even though commercial success means a thing or two, his basic motto is all about staying true.