Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani is, I feel, the movie that spurred the trend ‘when the trip makes it out of the group chat’.
Mine never did, so, watching this movie a million times is my way of living vicariously.
For the majority of you who must have watched it, consider this a sign to watch it again. For those who haven’t, this is me yelling at you to go watch it.
Let’s dive right in.
The movie begins with a bunch of wedding invitations, actually hampers being sent out to different people. You can tell it's a rich wedding.
One of these hampers reaches Naina Talwar (Deepika Padukone). I don’t remember what kind of doctor she is, but she is one. Seeing that hamper, she dives into an old bag full of mementos and trinkets from a trip she took a few years ago.
With an overbearing mother, a medical career to go after, and super introverted skills, Naina is your girl next door. And Deepika did justice to it beautifully.
Tired of her studious rut, she decides to take that one leap and ends up booking a trip to Manali with a bunch of strangers. And I don’t have to tell you how much courage it takes as an introvert to even start a conversation, let alone do what she did.
At the station, we are introduced to Kabir, aka Bunny (Ranbir Kapoor), your classic bad boy who confuses Naina with a bunch of different girls upon seeing her before finally recognizing her as Topper Naina from his school.
Now, here, right here, is the moment of absolute vulnerability by Naina that just grabbed my heart.
As someone who hasn’t ventured out a lot, and who is still scared of crossing roads on her own, this hit me so hard. And this is where Bunny tells her that now is the time. It is the enthusiastic encouragement for me.
I am going to skip over the train ride, Lara, and drinking games except that one part, where everyone is playing ‘Never have I ever’ and Naina realizes yet again that there is so much that she has missed out on.
They finally land in Manali. Through the glimpses of Kabir praying for a NY penthouse, Spanish girlfriends, and his friend Aditi (Kalki Koechlin) being in love with his other friend Avi (Aditya Roy Kapur), we understand the dynamics of their friendship.
Around this time, Bunny encourages Naina to let loose and to love herself a little more. And that is exactly what she does.
Bunny sneaks away from camp to go climb the haunted mountain, only to be scared by Naina. In the moonlight, surrounded by snow, we hear the one dialogue that everyone swooned to.
I guess when you’re a hopeless dreamer and adventurer, you would always want to live a life that isn’t ghisi piti.
Somewhere along this overnight trek, Naina falls in love. And right around the end of the trip, when she decides to tell him, we find out that Kabir has been accepted with a scholarship ride to a college in Chicago. So, she doesn’t.
Meanwhile, Aditi is heartbroken because it dawns on her that Avi won’t be falling in love with her.
Avi is heartbroken because he was dreaming of opening a bar with Kabir.
And so, the four friends part ways.
Until 8 years later, when they’re all reunited at Aditi’s wedding, who is tying the knot in a destination wedding in Udaipur with a super sweet man (I am so jealous). Avi is in financial trouble as his bar isn’t doing well. Naina has completed her studies and is now practicing. And Bunny is traveling the world.
After the whole song and dance routine, we find out that Avi still holds a grudge against Bunny, because for him, opening a daru ka adda was an actual plan. He drinks. He gambles money like he has heaps of gold buried somewhere.
During this time, Naina and Bunny bond again. They flirt, banter, go sightseeing, and have one of the most interesting conversations that defines how different people’s perspectives are.
Pretty soon, Bunny and Avi also bury the hatchet. And all 4 friends are back again together.
And then, comes the confession.
While Naina shares a drink with the gorgeous Rana Daggubatti, Bunny crashes in with an overly jealous attitude. Angry and frustrated, Naina blurts out the truth she wasn’t able to share all those years ago.
And then, the kiss.
But there is so much more to it than just expressing your love. Naina, being the realist she is, tries to talk about the various ways their relationship could play out. Because she has her own practice and family here in India. While Bunny travels the world for his work, not staying in one place long enough. How are they going to make it work?
And so, by the time the wedding ceremony ends, they have parted ways.
But I guess Bollywood is a sucker for happy endings because after paying a visit to his childhood home, Bunny arrives to surprise Naina. With a fake ring. And a proposal.
And the rest is history.
The movie was released 10 years ago.
The cast, the dialogue, the delivery. The songs I would dance to with the same enthusiasm, even today. The way I fell in love with Naina and her love for Bunny and Aditi. Never related to a character more.
Because this movie was comfort. It was an emotion. It was nostalgia. It was a hug on days when you missed your people. It talked about ambition. It talked about the reality of how quickly your lives move ahead once you’re done with college.
It has been 10 years of Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. I have already seen it so many times, and I would gladly watch it a million times more.
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