When we ask for love stories and softer heroes when the resurgence of the Angry Young Man is in full swing, we don’t mean making romance bland and chemistry nonexistent. Ek Din begins with a worthy declaration about jaisa filmon mein hota hai waise zindagi mein nahin hota — hoobahoo. You’ll be an idiot not to believe that.
Ek Din, backed by Aamir Khan Productions, gives us a hero in Junaid Khan’s Dino who is awkward, nice to a fault and invisible till someone needs IT services at Noida’s software developing company. He is slightly stalkerish, remembering everything about Sai Pallavi’s Meera, his good-natured and sweet colleague, down to a T, even her first day in office. Dino harbours one-sided love for Meera, who is having an affair with the very-much married office boss Nakul (Kunal Kapoor) and love for all things Japan.
Meera, Nakul, and Dino go on a five-day office trip to Japan along with the whole team to celebrate a company milestone. There, Dino makes a wish that is way out of his league, just like Meera: let Meera be his if only it were for one day. The weather gods listen to Dino, the wishing bell rings, and the office nerd — who dwells too much into details — gets his wish.
On this office trip, Meera finds out a dirty little secret, gets drunk, and has an accident in the blizzard-hit Japan after all colleagues leave for India. But Dino stays by her side and as you have seen in the trailer, Meera suffers Transient Global Amnesia (TGA) which leads to temporary memory loss that lasts 24 hours. Nevertheless, Dino and Meera spend that one day together and make memories for a lifetime, we are told, until she forgets the very day.
This romance drama, directed by Sunil Pandey, is a forgettable addition to the crowded universe of memory-and-love films. When comparisons between Ek Din and Saiyaara started doing the rounds on social media, basis the whole love-memory loss plot, Aamir Khan was forced to clarify. In an interview, the producer said the “film is completely different”. We agree. Ek Din is nothing close to what Saiyaara — which had Early-onset Alzheimer’s disease at the centre — was.
There is little chemistry between the lead actors Junaid Khan and Sai Pallavi, despite their individual sincere efforts. The loss of love can make you feel physically empty too, regardless of memories, the film says in an earnest appeal, exactly what Saiyaara managed to do with music, heartbreak, and most importantly, emotional investment by the viewer. Ek Din never makes you really feel the heartache and the longing, and the limited 24-hour plot point is not the reason. Japan is beautiful in winters and Meera’s Hokkaido bucket list is perhaps the most exciting thing in the movie.
This is Sai Pallavi’s official Hindi cinema debut, where the makers placed her name above Junaid Khan’s in the credits. She commits fully to playing Meera, who does something in the software company though we never exactly find out what. She drinks, is reckless, is non-judgemental, is a collector of Snow Miku figurines, and dances like a dream. Sai Pallavi, however, deserved more.
With every film, Junaid Khan is getting more comfortable in his skin. There are a few sparks — he spreads his arms in a song like Shah Rukh Khan — but there’s not enough to save the day.
PS: In the climax, Meera and Dino meet at a Japanese cafe for lunch. As Dino watches Meera enter, my eye stops at one of the bookshelves. There are fashion books, perhaps catalogues, with names of top global brands. I spotted one titled Prada. This was my cue.
Also Read | Aamir Khan Calls Son Junaid ‘Lambi Race Ka Ghoda’ Ahead Of Ek Din Release
