Imtiaz Ali deserves credit for pushing the envelope once again. After Jab We Met, there were huge expectations of him, but Imtiaz has not let them deter him from making something that is, frankly, a risky subject. The film may not have an appeal as wide as Jab We Met, or may not even be watched as many times repeatedly on television, but it is testimony to Imtiaz Ali’s brilliance as a storyteller.

Indian mainstream cinema has not seen a more contemporary love story. It’s a complete film — the dialogue is breezy and refreshingly candid; there’s not a song out of place; the smart choreography adds to the richness of the narrative; the editing keeps it tight; and the visuals are rich with metaphors — the Purana Qila epitomises old world romance, and Meera is the restoration artist.

Both Saif and Deepika are convincing as Jai and Meera. Saif has pulled of an astounding act as urbane, flirty, idiotic, confused Jai and is likeable as the younger Veer too. Deepika has enacted way beyond her previous roles. Rishi Kapoor is the eternal lover boy and is cute and adorable in the film. All in all this film makes you fall love with the idea of falling in love all over again.

The snappy back-and-forth between the guy and girl, the large Sardar family and the songs, the train journey (a leitmotif in Imtiaz’s films), remind you strongly of both ‘Hum Tum’, and ‘Jab We Met’. Saif playing the older Veer, in turban and beard and rashes of Punjabi, comes up with a few fresh flourishes; but his Jai is all too familiar.

…this time, the effervescence and adrenalin rush of impetuous love, resonant in the romance of Geet and Aditya in Jab We Met, has been replaced by a more serious and realistic take on modern love. The film literally holds up a mirror to the commitment phobia of the young, successful professionals who keep changing their status from `committed’ to `single’ on the sundry social networking sites. Much to the chagrin of their dads and mums who fail to understand this emotional dilettantism and keep badgering them with love-of-a-lifetime cliches.

It is only at this, film three, that the director appears to have hit a snag. Love Aaj Kal is watchable, but feels heavily compromised. It’s a romantic drama that would have worked wonderfully if it hadn’t tried to be funny in the first half, and doesn’t work in the second because the laughs dry up. We have poignant moments interrupted by touches of lets-tickle-the-audience humour, as if India can’t take a drama straight up.