Prem Keetanu – yet another Hindi remake of the Malayalam hit Premalu – leaves you staring at the screen like a confused Inception fan asking, “What level of reality am I even watching?” Is it a rom-com? Is it on post-breakup insecurity? Or on fragile male egos? The film desperately tries to be all three – and more – and ends up like a buffet plate where someone poured dal over the gulab jamun (not kidding). What begins as a classic boy-meets-girl setup in college snowballs into a love triangle and then lectures us on way too many things, much like a pop-up ad.
How Is The Story?
The story kicks off at SIT Banaras, where Suhani (Aafiya Sayed) is standing in an admission queue. The second she gets accepted into her dream college, she turns to hug her dad (Rakesh Bedi), but accidentally hugs a random stranger, Vishal (Veer Pahariya), instead. They then exchange dramatic curses (much like Ektaa Kapoor shows) that neither will get a partner in college. Move over, Harry Potter vs Voldemort – this is the real rivalry of our time, and Hollywood needs to take notes!
Vishal, as one can predict, wastes his college years partying, hunting for love, and getting rejected in placement interviews. He returns home only to return to Delhi to reset his life. He, per his plan B, starts preparing for GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) and TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) for higher studies in the United States and later to secure a job there.
Suhani, being a bright kid, lands a solid corporate job. Her manager, Ranjit (Aparshakti Khurana), who interviewed her during college placements, is smitten with her – though Suhani remains completely oblivious, giving off massive “I missed all the hint drop tutorials” energy. It’s only later that she realises he’s been into her all along.
Suhani and Vishal then bump into each other at a wedding (this was expected since the very beginning) and hit it off. The catch? Suhani sees him purely as a bro; Vishal sees her as his future wife. But her manager Ranjit and Suhani’s endless checklist of “ideal partner qualities”. And just like that, we have a love triangle so predictable that you could step out to buy popcorn, get stuck in traffic, come back, and still correctly predict the next five scenes.
What Doesn’t Work
Where Prem Keetanu truly derails is its messaging. It attempts to wave the “No Means No” flag, while also peddling the oldest romantic fallacy in the book – “Uski na mein hi haan hai.” Its takeaway seems to be that if a girl friend-zones you, don’t accept the rejection; just disappear. Stop talking to her, let her miss you, and wait for the inevitable moment when she feels vulnerable enough to come running back. In other words, respect her “no” only as a temporary obstacle to be overcome. It’s a bafflingly regressive message, dressed up as romantic advice, and the kind of toxic dating advice that feels ripped straight from a 2000s pickup-artist subreddit.
Another is the “Launde aise hi hote hain” (Boys will be boys) rationale and the tired trope that paints the entire gender with one lazy brush – women only go after successful men (what’s wrong with that, I mean, but whatever). To top it off, Vishal’s wingman Magan (Nikhil Vijay) spends the runtime handing out terrible advice like an unvetted life coach on Instagram Reels.
Performances
Veer Pahariya gets full points for effort. He brings genuine energy to the screen, but even the best captain can’t save a ship that was written to sink.
Aparshakti Khurana seems to be playing a game of “How to act like Ayushmann Khurrana without any of the natural charm.” His performance is so over-the-top and miscast that you keep waiting for someone to yell, “Okay, that’s enough. Let’s try it again, but this time normally.”
Aafiya Sayed, who is making her debut, comes across like a newcomer with a long road ahead. She carries a permanently pasted, vacant smile – even during emotional arguments – making it impossible to invest in her journey.
Rakesh Bedi is the absolute MVP. Bedi single-handedly carries the film’s comedy. He knows the assignment (we all have seen him in Dhurandhar), nails the delivery, and provides the only genuine laughs in the theatre.
Music
Despite assembling an Avengers-level squad of music talent – Sachet-Parampara, B Praak, and Armaan Malik – the soundtrack is an absolute ghost town. You won’t remember a single melody or hook even before leaving the theatres.
Verdict
If you’ve watched classic commercial entertainers like Student of the Year – which actually knew what it wanted to be, had bangers on the soundtrack, and kept you hooked – Prem Keetanu will leave you wondering why this remake was greenlit at all. You can instead rewatch the original Premalu with subtitles.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: abplive.com
