ZINDAGI NA MILEGI DOBARA

Three friends decide to turn their fantasy vacation into reality after one of their friends gets engaged.

I am not exaggerating when I say this is my go-to movie when I am tired of living (basically every single day).

This film has a special place in my heart for many reasons. Mainly because it is such a feel good movie, it is impossible to find a time when watching this movie is inappropriate. This has become the movie me and my mom watch anytime we think of a movie to binge. Feel good movies bring such a wide smile to your face, you do not even realize how important they are as films. Bad days can bring us down as people and to get back into the game, sometimes as we need someone to say is 'zindagi na milegi dobara' (translation: you only live once). Happiness is temporary, some say, so movies like these are a great booster of a mood just to get your head back in the game. 

This premise of friends going on a vacation too, in my opinion can never go wrong. Everyone has a dream to experience something like this sometime in their long, boring lives. I also love how each male lead had a problem in their lives that was magically fixed over just spending time with their loved ones, rewinding life and enjoying the view for once. Hrithik Roshan's character, the money minded one, that puts earning money on such a a pedestal that life to him is just supposed to be lives one paycheck at a time (or even multiple). Then, Farhan Akhtar's character, who had dad issues (no literally). He never knew his dad and lived in question of his parent, thinking what life would have been with him. Thirdly, Abhay Deol's character, who had a problem with his marriage, also the reason the bachelor trip was held in the first place, to celebrate the very marriage he was doubtful about. I think that vacation movies are amazing and relaxing to watch, but with each character having these developments that we, as viewers, experience throughout the 2-hour period, adds more depth into this movie. I absolutely love that.

Everyone in this movie was believable, again hats off to the actors. The three main leads, the diving instructor (Katrina Kaif), the to-be wife (Kalki Koechlin) in particular are perfect for these roles. That's precisely when you know the actors did well, when you now only picture them doing these roles. Also, something I actually love about this movie is that it was directed by Zoya Akhtar, the sister of Farhan Akhtar, one of the main actors. Together, they even collaborated on the script. I know Bollywood has a reputation of doing its movies among family members as well, but this one, I did not expect. Seeing as how free spirited it is, the fact that a brother and sister sat together to write the script, I find that amazing. 

Now, the controversies. Yes, holiday movies are really relaxing, but after a certain point don't you think they can become a dream too far away? When I first watched this movie, I was so enraptured about the idea of going abroad with my friends to have a spectacular trip, memorable in all ways that I never sat to think how much that all must cost in the first place. Not just that, to go abroad for 3 weeks seems so far away (maybe because I have not gotten my first paycheck yet). Am I the only one who thinks about these things? How can a solution to any problem be merely spend a bomb on a vacation overseas, but to me, it is a wonderful solution.

Next, the problems all the people in the movie faced. Particularly, Abhay Deol's character. Someone I watched this movie with mentioned how that whole premise was wrong (conventional minds are going to be forgiven, someday). Since he was already dating her in the first place, why did he suddenly doubt marrying her? He was with her all this time. The counter argument was, that she changed after he proposed, like became a different person entirely, obsessed about marriage. But then again, that happens to everyone pre-marriage. All they think about is the wedding, the big day. So was she really wrong? Was it still right for him to doubt marrying her? I will leave that up to you to decide.

All in all, this is among my favorite movies when I am just content and want to remind myself how fleeting life is, stop and feel your heart beating and know that you're alive.

Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Abhay Deol, Farhan Akhtar, Katrina Kaif, Kalki Koechlin, Ariadna Cadrol, Naseeruddin Shah, Deepti Naval, Suhel Seth

Director: Zoya Akhtar

Year released: 2011

Link to watch full movie with english subtitles:

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011) Full Movie Eng Sub - 123Movies (123movieshub.pm)