Article Updated 15 June, 2003 03:43:51 AM IST   Chalte Chalte By Sanjay Shah ©2003 Bollyvista.com   The luck, it seems, will finally turn favorable to Shah Rukh Khan the producer. After making to flops, he is back with third home production Chalte Chalte. Directed by none other than his favorite Aziz Mirza, Chalte Chalte is a feel-good film till the interval. And it will work only if viewers like the second half. The story is as simple as it could be. Raj (Shah Rukh Khan) is a transport company owner. Priya (Rani Mukherjee) is an Indian girl living in Greece but comes to India to be with her aunt. Soon after meeting on highway, they fall in love. Though Raj is a middle class guy, he looks and behaves more like a rich man. Anyway, Priya dumps his old friend Sameer (Jas Arora) and weds to him. You may have seen happenings like this in many previous films. Kora Kagaz and Saathiya are two such examples. Interestingly, love flourished through Mumbai’s local train in Saathiya while here it grows with trucks. But life enters on a bumpy road right after the marriage. Small things become big issues and the couple heads towards a relationship that seems not working anymore. Priya leaves Raj and starts living with her aunt… Chalte Chalte has no great narrative to boast of. It opens with a promising note where every small thing is taken care of. That’s why the first half is far better than the second half. Scenes like the one happen on the road with traffic constable and Priya’s auspicious entry into Raj’s house (gruhpravesh) are really enjoyable. It is the second half which leaves much to be desired. While the director successfully completes the part of establishing the lead protagonists through easygoing sequences and equally fine execution, he fails to present the later part. That is why all the differences between Raj and Priya fail to touch the senses. That is why the culmination of their coming together once again looks not that impressive. In the second half, the film has many weaknesses. Firstly, there are no real issues with which the conflicts and misunderstanding have been shown. Then the film’s climax is lengthy. A subject like this where emotions are the most important factor, one really wishes to see the climax which is far more superior. But Mirza hardly manages to deliver and so, the movie looses its grip. It’s a Shah Rukh movie, not just as a producer but also as an actor. And when he is around, backed by an actress as lovable as Rani, it really becomes difficult to give good mileage to others artistes’ characters. This is one area where this film moves in wrong direction. Besides the top two characters and little bit footage for Sameer, none of the other characters are shown well. However, some good things do help the movie to remain better. And that includes technical sides. Ashok Mehta’s cinematography is so good that it adds life to each and every frame. One will easily feel why he is considered as one of the best cinematographer of India. Priten Patil’s art is also good and he has created some really interesting sets. Amitabh Shukla’s editing could have been better in the second half. Screenplay by Mirza and Robin Bhatt is simple while dialogues by Pramod Sharma and Ashish Kariya are entertaining and punchy. Musically. The film has a couple of good numbers like, ‘Tauba tumhare’ and ‘Gumshuda’. Still, the choice of viewers may go wider than this and they may love more songs that just two. Farah Khan’s choreography helps the songs to create right mood. Shah Rukh is a big crowd puller in both Indian and foreign market. Remember his film Hum Tumhare Hai Sanam, which flopped in India but become a big hit in UK? His acting in Chalte Chalte is so good that he may alone prove more than enough to make this film a winner. And there’s Rani as well who has come up with an equally good performance. While there is nothing so great to talk about other characters, one can say that Satish Shah is noticeable. Aziz Mirza as a director has done fairly well job in Chalte Chalte. He could have made this a very nice movie if things would have gone well with the second half. Chalte Chalte, in all, is a worth film if you want to see Shah Rukh Khan in action. Got it?   close   Print this Article http://www.bollyvista.com   http://www.bollyvista.com/article/a/29/605