Aaja Nachle - Movie Review

Published: July 28, 2010

By EKTA R. GARG

Starring Madhuri Dixit, Akshaye Khanna, Konkona Sen Sharma, Kunal Kapoor

As one of the most acclaimed actresses of her generation, Madhuri Dixit disappointed a lot of fans when she announced her retirement from the Hindi film industry after her 2002 film, Devdas. Those same fans were thrilled when Dixit decided to re-launch her career in a film by the most powerful production house in India—Yash Raj Films. Despite some charming moments, though, her comeback, Aaja Nachle, leaves a lot to be desired from this veteran actress and dancer.

There's no doubt Dixit is still light on her feet. The film opens with a few quick shots of New York City and then cuts to a dance studio where we get to see her character, Dia, rehearsing with her dance troupe. Dia learns her former dance guru in India is dying, and forgetting her promise never to return to her hometown of Shamli, she promptly boards a plane with her daughter, Radha. She reaches Shamli a day too late to see her guru, but he has left her a video message in which he entreats Dia to help the people of Shamli. The performing arts that once flourished in the town are dying, and plans are underway to demolish the outdoor theater space, called Ajanta Theater, where dancers and singers and actors once congregated.

Dia is determined not to let this happen, but she’s also aware that it was her own abrupt departure that contributed to the beginning of Ajanta’s downfall: Dia ran away for love, and parents in town are afraid their own children will do the same, so they have let Ajanta fall into disrepair. Dia pleads with the local MP (Member of Parliament) to reconsider his plans to have a shopping mall built on the site after Ajanta is demolished. The MP (played with just the right touch of arrogance and charm by Akshaye Khanna) makes a deal with Dia: if she can, in two months time, put on a show at Ajanta with all the dancers and actors coming from Shamli, he’s willing to cancel the demolition. Dia is convinced she can do it and sets out to convince the town members that they need Ajanta as much as it needs them.

If Aaja Nachle had been released 10 years ago, it may have fared well at the box office. But the movie was released in 2007, in what can be called the “new age” of Bollywood. Madhuri Dixit clearly enjoys herself here, and she has ample opportunity to interact with several members of Bollywood’s new generation—actors Kunal Kapoor and Konkona Sen Sharma in supporting roles—but the film’s simplistic approach to its core conflict and the equally pat solutions ensured the film’s failure. There are some individually charming moments: the exchanges between Dixit and Khanna, and Sharma’s entire role. The music, too, is delightful, but it couldn’t save the film.

For diehard Dixit fans, this might be worth viewing, but otherwise, Aaja Nachle is rated Skip.

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