Love Aaj Kal: Ranking All Imtiaz Ali Movies From Worst to Best; Where Does Sara Ali Khan, Kartik Aaryan Starrer Fit In?

Imtiaz Ali was supposed to be this generation's Muzaffar Ali. At least, he was seen as this visionary filmmaker whose take on love and romance was to stand out from other directors' attempts in the genre. Many of his fans could relate to the emotions, humour, the pain, the conflicted characters and the relatable situations in his earlier films. Which is exactly why Imtiaz Ali became a brand in Bollywood. Imtiaz Ali Might Want To Cast Kartik Aaryan and Ranveer Singh For 'Love Aaj Kal 2030' Because The Poster's Ready!

And then it happened. He got obsessed with the tragic, socially awkward hero with unresolved issues that he himself had created. He made his own formula, created quite a few recipes out of it and his fans are claiming these dishes are now tasting the same.

Which is also the case with the criticism surrounding his new film, Love Aaj Kal. The movie, starring Sara Ali Khan and Kartik Aaryan in the lead, is a reprise of Ali's own film with the same name from 2009. Why the makers would retain the same name is something only they can answer, but Love Aaj Kal doesn't retain the same kind of critical reception, though. Something we will discuss ahead. Love Aaj Kal Movie Review: Imtiaz Ali Puts Up Another Disappointing Show in Kartik Aaryan-Sara Ali Khan’s Vaguely Annoying Love Story.

As a filmmaker, Imitiaz Ali had made his debut in Bollywood in 2005 with the film, Socha Na Tha. He got his breakout success with the 2007 film, Jab We Met, and got instant stardom. In the gap of 15 years, Imtiaz has made eight films. In this special feature, let's ranked based on how they appealed to us from Worst to the Best. You can differ with our ranking if you want in the comments section below:

Love Aaj Kal (2020 version)

Sadly, Imtiaz Ali's recent film is something that appealed to us least of all his efforts. It isn't that the new Love Aaj Kal is a bad movie, it's that it feels superficial, muddled and philosophical for the sake of it. Imtiaz the director is still in good form, but the writer in him takes a beating, repeating tropes from his previous films, taking a very predictable pattern with his premise and in the end, making us wonder about the point of it all. The '90s portions were still good, mostly enhanced by Randeep Hooda's narration, but it is the present timeline that feels shallow. Sara Ali Khan, who is otherwise confident, also tends to go theatrical in a couple of crucial scenes, ruining whatever impact those were supposed to make. Love Aaj Kal: 10 Bizarre Takeaways From Imtiaz Ali’s Film With Kartik Aaryan and Sara Ali Khan (SPOILER ALERT).

Jab Harry Met Sejal

Jab Harry Met Sejal is what made Imtiaz Ali's detractors begin to doubt if that man is stuck with his obsession for Rumi-ness. It is a pretty average movie, whose big twist about the missing ring (that brings Harry and Sejal together in the first place) was something fans deduced the moment the promos came out. Even the lazy title (that was suggested by Ranbir Kapoor, no less) was ridiculed. When the movie came out, Jab Harry Met Sejal turned out to be a very verbose road trip affair, that couldn't find the right tone. At times, it was deeply philosophical, at times, strangely passionate and then randomly comical. We are never able to deduce why Harry could not return to his homeland for years, and why it came to a girl he met days back for him to come to India. We are never able to figure out why Sejal is fascinated with Harry from the start. As a friend once told me, JHMS feels like a middle portion of a trilogy whose ends have gone missing. At least the songs were good, and the performances by Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma were fine.

Tamasha

Tamasha is a good movie, when it wasn't burdened by its tonal flaws. The movie has a good first half, beautiful visuals and a very strong finale. Not to mention, excellent performances from both Deepika Padukone and Ranbir Kapoor. Once the action shifts from Corsica to India, and we meet the new persona of Ranbir's character, is where things start to crumble. The sudden shift in his personality may appeal to some, but it makes little sense narrative-wise. It also doesn't help that Deepika goes missing for most of the portions here, with the focus falling on Ranbir's character. Once again, Imtiaz's writing falls for the trap of being intellectual in these scenes, bogging the film down.

Rockstar

Rockstar could have been one of the best tragic love stories Hindi cinema has ever seen, if it was not for one big weak spot - Nargis Fakhri. The then-debutante's flail performance clearly affects her character, whose obsession is what drives the madness of our protagonist, Janardhan. With a heroine whom we really cannot empathise with, it feels difficult to connect to the central love story, and thereby its tragic ending. And yet, Rockstar isn't the disaster it could have and that's credited to Imtiaz's deft handling of the narrative, AR Rahman's fantastic score and Ranbir Kapoor's brilliant performance anchoring the film.

Highway

The darkest of Imtiaz Ali's films, Highway is most affectionately remembered for showing Bollywood fans that Alia Bhatt can be more than a ditzy bombshell - an image that her debut film, Student of the Year gave her. But let's also not forget that there is another fantastic performance here that often goes unsung, that of Randeep Hooda's. Imtiaz Ali's unconventional love story with heavy dose of Stockholm's Syndrome, Highway is deliberately slow and grim, which makes sense later when you learn of the heroine's disturbing past. But even in those slow moments, it's Imtiaz treatment and the actor's performances that empower the saga and making us feel for these deeply flawed characters.

Love Aaj Kal (2009 Version)

Before Imtiaz was obsessed with tragic tales and morose protagonists, there was a sense of light-heartedness in his movies. The older Love Aaj Kal was a prime example for the same. Unlike its newer counterpart, the conflict in the 'Aaj' love story felt a lot real and relatable even if it has been dramatised and glossed, with a lovely chemistry between Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone. The 'Kal' love story is filled with goodness and innocence, with the contrast working well. What brings down Love Aaj Kal down a bit is the predictable way it ends, where the writing becomes very cliched. A big saving grace for the film is the music by Pritam, with three of the songs borrowed in its new version as well (another drawback for Love Aaj Kal 2020).

Socha Na Tha

Imtiaz Ali's debut film is also his most underrated effort. Featuring Abhay Deol (in his debut role) and Ayesha Takia, Socha Na Tha was overlooked at the box office during its release. Over the years, the viewers realised what a sweet little gem this film is. The fresh treatment is given to the boy-meets-girl tale is what makes the film so special with Ali's sparkling dialogues making it even more better. The climax is perhaps the best part of the film living up to the whimsicality of how Imtiaz had treated the film before. Though, we can't help but notice some very heavy influences from the 2001 Tamil film Dumm Dumm Dumm starring R Madhavan and Jyothika.

Jab We Met

The film that made Imtiaz Ali the darling of the Bollywood romantics continues to be the best film of the director. Coming at a time when its leads, Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor, had broken up in real life, Jab We Met had gained quite the mileage for this split and turned out to be the bigger success and a better film than any of the films they did as a couple. Imtiaz's love for road trips is cemented through this enjoyable saga that is effective both in its light-hearted scenes and the emotional ones. Pritam delivers one of his best soundtracks here (though later we found that a couple of tracks have been lifted). We are also thankful for JWM for giving us one of the best female characters of this century in Geet, played marvellously by Kareena Kapoor, while Shahid Kapoor is suitably restrained.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 15, 2020 10:08 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).