Ajay Devgn and Tabu deliver an old-school love story; the film lacks “Dum”

• Name of the film:Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
• Critics rating: 2 / 5
• Release date: 2 August 2024
• Director: Neeraj Pandey
• Genre: Romantic thriller

Aur Mein Kaun Dum Tha, starring Ajay Devgn and Tabu in the lead roles, is finally hitting the theatres today, August 2, 2024. As the name of the film suggests, it fails to live up to expectations. One of the most popular on-screen pairs Ajay Devgn and Tabu and their combination with director Neeraj Pandey also fails to impress as the story of the film is quite predictable and boring. Read the full review below to get a quick insight into the intricacies of the story, acting and direction of Aur Mein Kaun Dum Tha.

Story

The story of the film begins with a man named Krishna (played by Ajay Devgn) who spends his days in jail. This man keeps having flashbacks and reflecting on his past. As the story progresses, Krishna’s crimes come to light and with it his 22-year-old love story, in which Krishna comes to Mumbai from his village and falls madly in love with a girl named Vasudha (played by Tabu).

The film then features Shantanu Maheshwari and Sai Manjrekar in the roles of young Krishna and Vasudha. An accident takes place which is shown thrice in flashbacks, there is no new angle or twist in it. Krishna is sent to jail after the accident. In the meantime, Vasudha marries someone else whose name is Abhijeet (played by Jimmy Shergill) who loves Vasudha as much as Krishna. Despite his insecurities, he gets Krishna out of jail. At the end of the story, a truth related to the accident is revealed which is quite predictable. Following this, Krishna leaves the country to start a new life while Vasudha spends the rest of her life with her husband.

Direction

Neeraj Pandey has not only directed the film but also written the screenplay. In such a situation, it is quite natural to lose the interest of the audience. A cliched story is being told which you must have seen many times in better form on the big screen. Earlier, Neeraj had revealed that he had been saving this story for 11 years, which further increased the expectations from the film, but this incomplete love story devoid of any thrill leaves one disappointed. The story of the film itself is its weakest offering.

Acting

As far as acting is concerned, Ajay’s character is portrayed as a sad and true lover. Ajay is a good actor but there was nothing new for him in this film, neither action nor romance. Most of his scenes are always flashbacks and his character lost in old memories seems quite weak. Despite his good acting, he has not been able to portray this character convincingly. In fact, it can be called one of the weakest performances of his career. Besides Ajay Devgan, Tabu is also seen in only two pairs of clothes in the entire film.

On the other hand, Tabu also has nothing special to do in this film. Though she managed to portray the emotions of suffering and pain, her character was not convincing. Jimmy Shergill’s role is quite small in the film and comes into the story only after the interval. People think that he will add tension to the story, but that does not happen. If only his character had been a little longer, the story could have been built better.

Shantanu Maheshwari and Sai Manjrekar, who are seen as young Krishna and Vasudha, have some good scenes in the film. It would not be wrong to say that both of them carry the story of the film on their shoulders. Shantanu plays the role of a well-behaved boy, but even light action scenes do not suit him. His chocolate boy image remains intact here too.

Sai’s acting deserves praise. She fully benefits from being Marathi as her role in the film is also that of a Marathi girl. The chemistry between Shantanu and Sai is also good, the only thing that bothers is that their scenes are repeated again and again. There is only one very strong character in the story i.e. Jignesh. This character is played by Jai Upadhyay. In the role of Ajay Devgan’s friend, he managed to make people laugh.

Songs

The songs ‘Kisi Roz…’ and ‘Aye Dil Zara…’ are good. As for the cinematography, the camera work is fantastic. Long shots showing the sea are effective. It can be said that the songs and the camera work hold the film together in a way.

Verdict

The story of unconditional love and sacrifice is very weak. Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha is not a good experience as it is quite cliched for cinema lovers who look for something new in every film. We give the film only 2 out of 5 stars.