Rarely have I come across a relatable, refreshing film with as much feel-good power as Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na (JTYJN).
Any student will relate to the part about an aunty telling you your phone is the reason you don’t know where your time went.
The first time I saw the film, I was still in school. I couldn’t wait to enjoy all that young-adult life would offer. I was smart enough to know my friends and I wouldn’t be able to break into choreographed dance sequences. However, I looked forward to the late-night dance parties, picnic trips, and surprise birthdays. Most of all, I think I wanted that experience of things aligning seamlessly for oneself in the professional, personal, and of course, romantic sense.
It has become common to see or hear about films or television shows from childhood becoming irrelevant for several reasons. For example, movies like You’ve Got Mail, or Home Alone might not make the most sense for viewers today. However, JTYJN is still relevant; it still makes sense. If nothing, all of the songs on the playlist are absolute gold.
The pandemic hit the earlier half of my college life. In the latter half, I find preparing for graduate school daunting and degree requirements endless. Amidst all this, I got the idea to revisit this classic Bollywood romantic comedy to see if college turned out to be what JTYJN portrayed. If it hasn’t, I think I do have the capabilities to make it as memorable, in the filmy style, as I can. After all, I do still have a year left.
For those who haven’t watched the movie, it follows the lives of a group of college kids with a significant focus on Jai Singh Rathore (Imran Khan) and Aditi Mahant (Genelia D’Souza). Supporting characters include Bombs (Alishka Varde), Jiggy (Nirav Mehta), Rotlu (Karan Makhija), and Shaleen (Sughanda Garg).
From the start, you can tell that this is a movie without typical Bollywood tropes. The leading man is characteristically non-violent. The leading lady does not shy away from a fight. The group of friends and their families are supportive of each other. We witness a strong single mother in Savitri (Ratna Pathak Shah) who wants to endow her son with a healthy upbringing and strong moral values. Savitri engages in heated conversations with her dead husband, Amar Singh Rathore (Naseeruddin Shah), who talks to her through his portrait in their house.
Additionally, the facets of each character’s relationships are relatable and endearing. Most can understand Aditi’s love-hate relationship with her brother Amit (Prateik Babbar). The exploration of Meghna’s (Manjari Fadnnis) domestically violent background is done in a poignant manner allowing audiences to make sense of her complex character. Furthermore, Jai’s struggle to pay respect to his lineage instead of adhering to his upbringing provides a powerful climax.
The airport scene where Jai manages to find Aditi before she leaves for New York City is the end of what we can see of their college life.
At this point, I think my time at LUMS is quite close to the utopian vision of student life offered by JTYJN. I have mostly been on a beautiful campus in a wonderful city to live within. The campus has countless supportive peers and faculty who help catalyze growth and positive change in each other. The batch nights are a respite from the stresses of academics.
Sure, it isn’t perfect. Enrollment issues, work drama, personal drama, society politics, the bout of online education because of covid.
Regardless, I think it has been good so far on an absolute scale.
I loved reading your post, however, it hit me with the sad realisation that I just have one year left here and how my college life will end at LUMS. This movie is one of my all time favourites as it beautifully captures the life of a group of friends. It has the perfect mix of comedy, drama and emotion while also being fun and light-hearted. There are also other movies like Ye Jawaani Hai Deewani and Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara which give a similar feeling of relatability of how important our university experience is. I believe this movie also teaches us how everything does work out in the end and not to worry much about the future. Moreover, your…
I swear, just by reading your piece, I feel nostalgic. Like others, Jane Tu Ya Jane Na, has been one of my favorite movies as well. It was even the last film I binged watched with my friends right before the pandemic happened, and we were forced into a lockdown for a year and a half.
I think the pandemic itself has been the biggest unfortunate drama we all witnessed. Adding to the academic and adulthood crisis, the movies started to make sense in an unexpected manner. Previously, it was the songs that made me remember the movie precisely, but now the characters, the dialogues, and the minor situations are the ones that resonate the most.
Moreover, the fact that…
Hi while JTNJN was a good movie to watch , i feel like college experience is not exactly like that , the movies like to glamorize everything and while one does want to have an experience like that , reality is a bit diff. Having said that I do feel though that university life itself is a very unique experience though diff from movies but enjoyable
Hahahaha hum bichaaron k 2 saal tou waqayi phone (read: zoom) pe guzar gaye xD
And amazing work with the blog! Loved how you linked it with your life at LUMS. I actually genuinely want to watch the movie now.
But to be honest, movies and shows like this that glamorize college life have sort of started to romanticize the idea of going to college. I mean, all of these are amazing to watch and always seem relatable. But when I personally go through phases when my university life starts to feel dull, it kind of feels a lot worse than it should, and I think that's because I had a lot of expectations associated with university life (partly thanks…
This was such an interesting read!
I happened to watch the movie much later in my academic life - in my sophomore year, during the pandemic - and immediately found myself drawing a comparison whilst hoping we would return back to "normal." Now that we have been returned that sense of normalcy somewhat (thank God), talk about in-person classes, getting to see friends almost everyday and being on campus more often I cant wait to see what senior year looks like and how much of it is going to be as incredible as the movie shows college life to be!
Apart from the really catchy songs, I agree with you on the unconventional nature of the lead characters, the lack…