Review: This one wakes up after the interval

Wake Up Sid
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Konkona Sen Sharma and others
Director: Ayan Mukerjee
Censor Rating: U/A
Critic's Rating: ***

Wake Up Sid, the directorial debut of Ayan Mukerjee, is almost lacklustre until the interval. After a cute introduction scene of 20-something Sid (Kapoor), the film follows a predictable pattern — one exam scene, another a canteen sequence, a song at a night club, and a farewell party scene — a la Dil Chahta Hai.

Even as talk of Mukerjee’s debut resonating with that of Farhan Akhtar has been doing the rounds for a while, this one is more like Akhtar's Lakshya, though the treatment is DCH. Sid is blissfully aimless, his father unhappy with his ways, and it takes a woman to 'wake' him up.

Sid meets Aisha (Sen Sharma), a Calcutta girl looking to make a foothold in Mumbai. Though Aisha is a few years older than Sid, the two click over a conversation at Marine Drive and keep in touch via email. While Sid is struggling to come to terms with the fact that he may have to start contributing to his dad's business (manufacturing shower fittings), Aisha gets a job of assisting the editor of a magazine named Mumbai Beat.

Till this point, the movie is strictly all right. The jokes are not-so-funny and the sequences give you a feeling of déjà vu as the story seems familiar. The scene just before the interval, where Sid storms out of his house because his father (Anupam Kher, in form) derides him for being a good-for-nothing laze, is the first where you get to see the potential of director Mukherjee as a storyteller. Ably performed by both Kher and Kapoor, the scene is followed by an intermission and you hope things get better.

They do. Sid is now living with Aisha, who even gets him a job at Mumbai Beat, that of an intern photographer. Sid starts to discover himself and realises little things he missed before — his mum’s (Supriya Pathak, excellent) efforts at speaking English only so that she could connect better with her young son, his dad giving up what he loves most so that he can provide a better life to his family, and the importance of standing on his own two feet.

He also realises that he loves Aisha, who for most part can't bring herself to think of Sid as anything more than a boy, but falls for him when she realises that he is what she really wants, even if she may not know it.

Mukerjee tells his story with a number of well-written scenes that are enacted even more ably by the actors — Sid and Aisha celebrating the latter's birthday, the one where Sid comes home to meet his mother and the scene where Aisha realises she has fallen for the younger Sid, remain with you even after the film has ended.

What also remains with you is Amit Trivedi's fantastically composed track, Iktara. The song plays through most of the last 20 minutes of the film and lends just the right mood to the proceedings. The rest of the songs, composed by Shankar Ehsaan Loy, remind you of their earlier hits and are strictly okay.

Certain things in the film do jar. In one scene, Sid's classmate tells him that she hated him because she had lost her seat to him in college after his dad used his influence to get it for him. Yet the two are shown graduating from the same college in the same year. In another scene, five minutes after Sid and Aisha meet, she suggests they go for a walk, making it clear that she doesn't want to 'sleep with him'. Now who talks like that?

As Aisha wants to be a writer, applying for the post of the editor's assistant doesn't make sense, especially when he clearly tells her she won't get to write at all. And after reading just one of her articles, he entrusts her with the job of writing a column! Every journalist's dream come true! 

These little discrepancies are what stop Wake Up Sid from going to the next level. Mukerjee, of course, makes a promising debut and though the plot is almost disappointingly simple, his treatment and handling of scenes more than make up for it. It would be nice to see him make another film that probably takes him out of his comfort zone and establishes himself as a more accomplished storyteller.

Kapoor and Sen Sharma are like magic. Extremely likeable, Kapoor performs the ‘un’hero-like character with ease, exhibiting natural charm and no effort in portraying Sid at all. Sen Sharma does well as usual, in an inspired peace of casting, and is extremely endearing. The two look good together. Rahul Khanna needs to stop playing the guy every girl leaves to be with the hero.

Wake Up Sid is a sweet and simple film, which could have done with a bit more originality in the first half. With performances by Ranbir Kapoor and Konkona Sen Sharma and the song Iktara being its strong points, the film will greatly impress college students who were still in school when Dil Chahta Hai released. Others won't be disappointed either.