Despite being a Salman fan I was not too impressed with some of his recent flicks which in my humble opinion lacked freshness or had mindless direction, so when a family member bought tickets for this movie I didn't go in with high expectations. But to you dear reader I'll say GO WITH HIGH EXPECTATIONS! It will not disappoint!
And more importantly go with your heart - that is all you need for this 2.5 hours long film to become one of the best you've seen in years. It's just one of those movies with such heart-tugging moments and the highlight - the bond between Pawan (Salman) and Shahida (Harshali) - which is such a delight to see that you forget all about plot, logic, direction - not to say that the movie lacks that. The perfection in execution is definitely there, especially in the second-half. I watched it in the AVX theatre with at least 500 others and from the sound of it at least 75% of them regardless of age or gender were crying from the intermission onwards - sometimes because it was sad and other times because the screenplay was just so pure and unfiltered that it just made these happy tears bubble up inside of you.
There is a certain level of comedy throughout and definitely some deep witty one-liners. My favourite was from Nawazuddin Sidduiqi (who played his role to perfection) who pointing at the current state of the media and their polarization of India and Pakistan proclaimed that "Hatred sells. Mohabbat doesn't."
The movie has depth, a message, and the cuteness overload that is Harshali Malhotra. It also has a relationship and emotions so simple yet so extraordinary that they make a hero out of a common man. :)
