Gustaakh Ishq Review: Naseerudin Shah, Vijay Varma, Fatima Sana Sheikh Bring Back Old-School Romance

Manish Malhotra’s production debut, Gustaakh Ishq is a breath of fresh air that Bollywood needed. Starring Naseeruddin Shah, Vijay Varma and Fatima Sana Sheikh in the lead roles, this romantic drama brings

back the old-school romance to the big screen. In a paradise made for poetry and shayari lovers, the story takes you through two different generations of love and tragedy. The amount of shayaris in the film will definitely make you say “Waah waah” after each frame.

Director Vibhu Puri has managed to capture the charm of these shayaris through beautiful frames across the 128 minutes of the film. Not a single frame disappoints you. The hidden superstar in majority of the film is the sunlight. The way Puri has managed to play around with natural lights is surely commendable. To add to all of this is the amazing costumes by Manish Malhotra. Fatima Sana Sheikh is seen in hues of pink throughout the film as if it replicates the love blooming between her character and Vijay Varma. Only in a few scenes can you see her costumes in a different colour than pink. Again, attention to detail by the crew stands out here.

Coming to the heart of the film — Naseeruddin Shah just brings out the best in all of what Puri and his team did behind the scenes. He fits in as the perfect piece of the puzzle that elevates not just the poems, but the overall feel of the film. Shah, as Aziz, is flawless in the movie and only goes on to prove why he is one of the finest actors in the country. Be it subtle comedy or dramatic scenes, Shah has got a swag of his own to pull it off.

Fatima Sana Sheikh, as Minni, also manages to blend in perfectly. This year has surely seen Sheikh in different romantic films across platforms. Just like one of her characters, Madhu Bose in Aap Jaisa Koi dealt with French as a language, Sheikh here again deals with Urdu. If Madhu Bose had to say something about Minni, she would definitely call it “epoustouflant”, which translates to breathtaking.

Vijay Varma as Nawabuddin Saifuddin Rahman is impressive, too. He has managed to capture the essence of the character very well. The journey of Varma’s character is what sets the tone of the film. An elder son who is struggling to meet ends and save his father’s Urdu Press and how he decides to set out on a journey to meet an old, forgotten poet, who is also his father’s long-lost friend, is what gets the ball rolling in the movie. Varma brings the much-needed laughs with his comic timing and dialogue delivery. He has surely managed to crack the code of playing a small-town romantic, who expresses well through poems and shayaris.

Speaking of the story and the flow of the film, the first half surely engages you and makes you want to just go with the flow of shayaris. However, the second half seems to be a little stretched, and could have been a lot more crisp and to the point than it is now. But having said that, the shayaris and Vishal Bharadwaj’s amazing music will still keep you going.

Manish Malhotra’s debut production is surely something old-school romantics would love on the big screen and is a must-watch for those who want to learn how falling in love can be a beautiful journey in itself.