Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke

The first film which stars Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai together is directed by Raj Kanwar. The film is about the twist and turns in love because of certain unexpected circumstances and misunderstandings. It extends to prove that God has written the future marriage of a person already and one cannot change it. The story is of Karan, a captain in army who loves Nisha and is on the way to meet her and propose for marriage. But he rescues a girl named Sahiba from murderers. Will it change the destiny of Karan?

There was also a cameo appearance of Salman Khan as a truck driver who left Karan in Nisha's place. His role had probably no importance but it was done to just attract audience to the film.

The music by Jatin-Lalit and lyrics penned by Sameer is excellent. Most songs were sung by Babul Supriyo and Anuradha Paudwal. There were nature-environment songs, group classical dances, and the Rabba Song of desert which is very similar to a song in Andaaz (2003) which Raj Kanwar shot two years after. The film Kitne Door Kitne Paas (2002) is also having a story which is little similar to Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke (2000). The total duration of the film was approximately 2hours 37 minutes (if we exclude the interval) and it is a great movie to explore the Indian culture in wedding.

DHAAI AKSHAR PREM KE is a hopelessly contrived and overly melodramatic musical romance from Bollywood, yet it deserves attention because of its central performance by the reigning queen of Bollywood, Aishwarya Rai. The beautiful Rai is seen to much better effect in such exemplary romantic spectaculars as HUM DIL DE CHUKE SANAM, TAAL, and DEVDAS, but she is quite compelling here playing a girl hopelessly in love with a man pining for someone else and ultimately forced, as she is in so many films, to marry a man she doesn't love.

A perennial staple of the melodramatic form is the misunderstanding that escalates to a point where it becomes too late to tell the truth and straighten things out. Here a young college girl from a traditional family, Sahiba (Rai), is rescued, first from attackers and then from a suicide attempt, by Karan (Abhishek Bachchan), a young army captain on leave. He takes her home to her family's rural estate and is assumed to be her new husband and welcomed enthusiastically by all the relatives but the girl's angry father, Yogi (Amrish Puri), who had opposed her going away. With each heart-warming ritual and ceremony, Karan becomes more and more a part of the family even though he is in love with a girl back home and eager to get back to her. Gradually, Sahiba grows to love him and eventually tells him so and begs him not to go.

To make a long story (167 minutes) short, Karan runs out on Sahiba only to learn that things at home are not what he thought they were. He returns to Sahiba's home to reclaim her, only to find her about to be married to the son of one of Yogi's business partners. Things take a particularly egregious melodramatic turn when two characters resort to some old-fashioned villainy (all that's missing are twirling mustaches), including tying up two of the protagonists to posts in a factory which is then set on fire. Having proved himself a man of action battling terrorists in the film's opening sequence, Karan gets an opportunity to be a two-fisted, pistol-shooting hero again in the film's implausible finale.

With the exception of a magnificent ceremonial number performed by Rai and a number of ornately dressed back-up dancers at the film's midway point, the songs are rather simply staged and consist largely of fantasy duets performed by Rai and Bachchan against exotic Indian backdrops and such far-flung locations as Scotland and Switzerland. The abrupt changes in setting (and costume) are rather jarring and tend to break the mood of the film and slow down the narrative.

The film remains worth seeing for Rai's moving portrayal of an anguished village girl who is both eager to break out of her traditional family structure yet is clearly nourished and empowered by the strong support she gets from her mother, grandmother, aunts and uncles. Rai's expressive eyes and mouth convey in heart-breaking fashion the gradual buildup of love for the man who rescued her and her anxiety at the prospect of him leaving. Even amidst the outlandish turn of events on display here, Rai proves what a superb film actress she is, expressing a full spectrum of emotions, from joy and contentment to fear and suicidal despair, never once striking a false note.

What are they thinking about when they make drivel like this. No plot, just melodrama, same stereotypes and same typecast actors in same crap no plot movie.

Abhishek doesn't belong in a role opposite Ash, he is better placed behind a terminal at Wipro Infotech.

On top of that who is that gay dude who comes as Vik to marry Ash and take her money. He is the son of Bhushan from Buiniyaad , yet another historical typecast fellow.

The only thong missing was Alok Nath as a a overemotional uncle of Ash.

...Aamir Khan

Wow...I sure was shocked by the incredibly low score of 3.8 for this film! While the film is far from perfect, it IS still very good and well worth seeing and I cannot understand the hatred viewers have for this film.

"Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke" is a very unusual film. It's very much like taking a traditional Indian love story (complete with song and dance numbers) and combining it with "While You Were Sleeping" as well as "Rambo"--I kid you not! It begins with Karan (Abhishek Bachchan)on some sort of mission for the Indian army. His exploits in this opening scene would make John Wayne look like a sissy!! He is THAT macho as he kills dozens of AK-47-armed killers with just his semi-automatic pistols. Heck, he even catches the Indian flag in the process! He is, in many ways, like an Indian Rambo! He then is given leave from the military and this Captain heads back to a girl he loves. However, on the way he is pulled into the life of a damsel in distress (Aishwarya Rai--who later became Aishwarya Rai Bachchan when she married Abhishek in 2007). She witnessed a murder and is about to be killed to keep his secret, but super-macho Karan comes to the rescue. Now you'd THINK that that would be it, but soon Karan comes to her rescue again. It seems that Sahiba is depressed and doesn't care if she lives or dies. Why? Because her family has disowned her for refusing to marry the man they picked for her. So, being an all-around swell guy, Karan agrees to accompany her home and pretend to be her boyfriend. The problem is that the family assumes he is her new husband!! And, like in "While You Were Sleeping", the little lie steamrolls into a huge and occasionally funny predicament. So what's next? Well, much of it is very predictable and formulaic--you KNOW by the end of the film that Karan and Sahiba must fall in love. But, how they get there is kind of crazy--and once again, very Rambo-like!

So is this odd film worth seeing? Absolutely. While the story IS very predictable in some ways, it also kept me guessing and was quite enjoyable as well. Why the strong dislike for it? I don't really know. Perhaps these folks who scored it low are a lot more familiar with Indian films than me--I've only seen about a hundred, as the films are still not that readily available here in the States (but it IS getting easier each year). Regardless, I liked it.

By the way, if you do see this one, don't be surprised if in some of the song and dance numbers that the folks suddenly appear in other countries (such as Switzerland and Scotland). I've seen this several times before, such as in Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's "I Have Found It" and it's apparently not all that uncommon for Bollywood pictures. Weird, huh?!

I absolutely love this movie! Particularly, when compared to the abundance of contemporary films lacking in acting prowess and compelling narratives, this movie truly stood out. It not only managed to make complete sense, but also left a profound impact on me. Additionally, the exquisite beauty of its songs added an extra layer of enjoyment to the overall experience. The moment I began watching, I was immediately drawn into the world of this film. Unlike the countless movies that fall short in terms of acting and storytelling, this one exceeded all expectations. The performances were so genuine and powerful that I felt fully immersed in the characters' lives. The actors' talent shone through, making each scene feel authentic and captivating.