Review: Not Papa, R Madhavan Is The Best In De De Pyaar De 2

"We are educated, progressive people. Hum modern log hain," is a catchphrase that forms the spine of De De Pyaar De 2, a rom-com that does an impressive job of tackling uncomfortable conversations around relationships in the modern era. The fact that the film doesn't treat women characters as trophies or infantilises them is a welcome change in a movie that also has Luv Ranjan as one of the producers.

R Madhavan and Gautami Kapoor play the concerned but 'well-meaning' parents of Rakul Preet Singh's headstrong Ayesha, who has decided to marry her mature live-in boyfriend of 6 months, Ashish - a divorced man with two grown-up children, played by Ajay Devgn.

Ayesha's parents are college sweethearts -- Rakesh and Anu -- who are (proudly) sexually active and so much in sync after 31 years of marriage that they call each other 'Rajji,' as opposed to the usual (pukes) 'honey' or 'baby'.

They were okay with Ayesha's partner being an older and divorced man, as they are not just parents to this 25-year-old independent woman but also friends who encourage open and honest conversations. They are doting parents-in-law to their daughter-in-law Kittu, played by the genial Ishita Dutta, whose presence in the film reminds you of the Drishyam franchise, especially when she shares the screen with Ajay Devgn.

But the mask of the Rajjis' progressive and modern nature is ripped off when they find out that Ashish is, in fact, older than her own father. R Madhavan is the scene stealer as the jealous, overbearing, and egotistical father who believes 'Papa knows best' and calls Ashish 'Shaitan' (wink wink).

It's like a full-circle moment for R Madhavan, who was on the other side of the fence years ago when he starred as the goofy South Indian son-in-law to the late Satish Shah's irritable Punjabi patriarch in the 1997 popular TV show Ghar Jamai.

De De Pyaar De 2 surprisingly has very few scenes featuring Ajay Devgn. We're not sure if it was by design or default, but the film works pretty well on its own, with other actors - including real-life father-son duo Jaaved Jaaferi and Meezaan Jaaferi - doing the heavy lifting.

As Ashish, Ajay Devgn plays the perfect mature older guy who gets Ayesha's goat as he doesn't pull out all stops to ensure they get married. His BFF Ronak (Jaaved Jaaferi) implores him to be a sachha aashiq, not an accha aashiq.

But we see Ashish making an effort to impress Ayesha's parents. After he cooks a Punjabi breakfast of aloo ki sabzi, kale chane, puri, and halwa, Ashish and the male Rajji end up bonding over blood pressure control medicines in quite a funny scene.

Age is the elephant in the room, a topic that De De Pyaar De 2 doesn't brush under the carpet. It takes it head-on.

The idea that older people have a bad memory is blown into smithereens when Ayesha's nani, played by the ever-graceful and pitch-perfect Suhasini Mulay, schools Ashish, who dared to even question hers.

Grandchildren's dates of birth, times of birth, who got married when, what they were doing when one of the grandchildren was born, and how much the Sri Lankan great Arjuna Ranatunga scored in that cricket match that they were watching at the hospital-she tells him all this, and more, and how. "Yaadasht pe nahin jaana tha..." she snarls.

It's also a coming-of-age film for producer Luv Ranjan, who has been (infamously) synonymous with all-boys-club films like the Pyaar Ka Punchnama franchise. In De De Pyaar De 2, director Anshul Sharma does a good job of making a rom-com that doesn't degrade women at the cost of comedy.

Here, women have a voice-and not just in the drab, in-your-face, prove-a-point manner. For example, Rakul Preet Singh's Ayesha is no bechari and doesn't wait to be manipulated or tricked.

While she does shout that she needs no saving and is not a child, she isn't afraid to call a spade a spade, whether it's her parents or partner. She is no one's puppet and doesn't live her life that way. A father is a daughter's first love, but a daughter is a father's last love, and yet no father has the right to cheat his daughter.

In what is mostly an entertaining watch, De De Pyaar De 2 explores themes of ageism, double standards, emotional blackmail, and ingrained patriarchy. So much for treating the audience with respect and not infantilizing them. Wish they hadn't bleeped out the expletives. We all lip-read; we know a cuss word when we "see" it.

There are some of those hee-hee I-see-what-you-did-there family jokes involving Kajol, Shah Rukh Khan, and drawing pop culture references from Phool Aur Kaante, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Singham, and Boogie Woogie that elicit giggles here and there.

Also Read | De De Pyaar De 2 Trailer: R Madhavan Adds New Twist To Ajay Devgn And Rakul Preet Singh's Romance

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