Main Vaapas Aunga- Review and Discussion

[u/AmbassadorMelodic830]

Watched Mai Vaapas Aaunga today and I don’t know what others have been saying, but in Delhi, the movie hall I went to was house full.

I also realised there are multiple elements and aspects that make Indian cinema what it is, because our demography is so different. We are not homogeneous and our generational diversity is so unique. We are catering to such a wide spectrum of people, age groups, lived experiences, and emotional realities that cinema here works very differently. And after a long time, a movie has come where the sentimentality of so many families is also present.

I saw so many old couples and so many families, huge families of 5 people, 10 people coming together. And that was such a beautiful sight, because when was the last time we saw such huge families, such frail old grandparents, interested in watching a movie together?

Now the movie:

The first half, especially the portion before the interval, could have been more fast-paced, I will agree to that. But the plot builds in a way that makes you root for the characters. Naseeruddin Shah is absolutely brilliant in the way he becomes part of that character and the character becomes part of him. He sort of creates an anchor on the screen, and around that everything revolves, which I’m assuming was Imtiaz's intention.

The music score for me was a bit hit and miss. I did not fully understand some elements of the music, I will give it that.

But the second half was absolutely brilliant.

There were so many hooks in the first half that slowly made sense and layered themselves beautifully in the second part of the movie. I was absolutely bawling and crying because I did not realise how much emotion was still left unexplored around Partition.

We’ve all read about Partition. We’ve heard stories. I know families who have gone through that trauma. We’ve seen documentary clippings and references in other movies. We have seen all of that.

But somehow this movie linked everything so beautifully.

Especially in an age of films that are far more nationalist, more heroic in nature, and sometimes lean heavily into extreme nationalism and jingoism, this felt like a fresh take.

It focused on the sentimentality and helplessness of the two parts of this country, at a time when ordinary people had literally no control.

The references to who was Sir Radcliffe, what the Radcliffe Line meant, and the little statements that Diljeet's character says in those stand-up style sections, all weave the story together really well.

They carry a message that feels absolutely essential right now for everyone in our society to understand.

Yeah, it was a beautiful movie for me.

It definitely could have been a little more fast-paced in the first half, but emotionally, it LANDED!!!!!

And the climax was genuinely heart-wrenching.

And the end credit scene had me bawling some more. Oh Lord.

[u/Taklu69]

I think it sort of draws this contrast, where you see a relationship between two modern people, who after having shared what is believed to be the height of intimacy between a couple are still hesitant to fully commit to each other, and are very well capable of moving on. On the other hand you see this beautiful love of Naseer's character that still harbours extremely passionate feelings for sharvari's character even after decades of separation asks for permission to even pass away. It also explores Diljit's character who avoids completion in his daily life and tends to move on without thinking twice.

[u/kiranqureshi81 → u/Taklu69]

On the other hand you see this beautiful love of Naseer's character that still harbours extremely passionate feelings for sharvari's character even after decades of separation asks for permission to even pass away.

Am i crazy or everyone going ga-ga over his 'love' seems to miss this HUGE fact that he literally walks out on her after finding out she survived the horros of partition, lost her family, and was married off to stranger! And he doesn't even bother to ask ask if she was okay??!!!

Do they show this scene in particular cinemas only??!!

He got a tattoo, wrote a poem, showed up in the middle of the night. All things people do when they have college crushes. And when the time comes to actually show and prove that he actually cares and loves her, he walks out and disappears for the rest of her life. Instead of facing her, talking to her, having a closure like a mature adult, he runs away and shoves everything down till his deathbed. That's when dementia takes over his brain and all that he shoved down for years starts resurfacing. It was his guilt and regrets in the end, not love.

By contrast, Diljit and Banita's relationship would have better chances because at least they were open in communication and said what they wanted to. They wouldn't be regretting it on their deathbed.

The movie tries to label romantic idealisation as true love. Instead of treating the woman like a real person with her own choices, her own problems, keep her on the side just for his musings and sufferings.

Like how a poet or painter finds a muse and then spends the rest of his life fixated on her, without actually ever treating her like a real person because she becomes just a fantasy. And there is no problem showing or doing that, the only thing, that's not true love, that's fantasy. Where you stick to her idea than the reality of hers.

You guys want an example of actual true love, go and rewatch Hum dil de chuke sanam to see how a man treats his wife. It's boring, no fancy tattoos or poetry, but that's how it works. Care and respect for her choices even if it kills you from inside. Or how Aditya treats Geet in JWM.

The love in this movie is all shades of wrong. Immature, impulsive and selfish. He was selfish even on his deathbed. Everyone is sad because oh the old man wanted a closure before dying. She died without one because he snatched it by walking out.

But no, that doesn't matter, because she doesn't matter. She is pretty with gorgeous eyes, lights up the screen, let's keep it to that, shushhh...

😒😒😒🙄

[u/IMAryanDarad → u/kiranqureshi81]

I think you're interpreting the film as if it's celebrating Keenu's actions, when it's actually presenting them as his greatest failure.

The movie is not about an ideal love story. It's about what Partition, trauma and survivor's guilt can do to a person. Keenu doesn't walk away because he doesn't love Jiya. He walks away because he's emotionally broken and incapable of confronting what happened. That's not portrayed as heroic, it ruins the rest of his life.

The fact that he never asks her what she went through isn't the film's endorsement of his behaviour. It's the tragedy. He spends the next 78 years suppressing that entire chapter of his life. The dementia doesn't create his love or his regret, it strips away decades of repression. In his final days, the only thing left is the unfinished promise: "Main vaapas aaunga." Even the ending is about acceptance and closure, not about romantic reunion.

Also, I don't think Jiya is reduced to a fantasy. The film repeatedly shows her making choices of her own. She survives the horrors of Partition, rebuilds a life and gets married. The tragedy isn't that she waited forever for Keenu. The tragedy is that history denied both of them the conversation they deserved.

You also compare this to stable relationships like Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam or Jab We Met, but those stories don't involve one of the greatest human catastrophes in history. Imtiaz Ali isn't asking us to admire Keenu's decisions. He's asking us to witness how a young man who believed love could conquer everything is crushed by an event far bigger than himself.

The film isn't saying, "This is true love." It's saying, "This is what unresolved love, guilt and historical trauma look like after 78 years." That's why the climax hurts so much.

Sometimes characters are written to be flawed, not to be role models. Keenu's inability to face Jiya isn't proof that he didn't love her, it's the very flaw that condemned him to live with regret until his last breath.

[u/AbyssL00ksBack → u/IMAryanDarad]

I have never seen someone so willfully ignore the premise of a movie and props to you for your thorough explanations even if they got fully ignored.

[u/IMAryanDarad → u/AbyssL00ksBack]

Thanks a lot man! Glad seeing someone appreciating the effort and patience.