Loveyapa Movie Review: Junaid Khan and Khushi Kapoor's latest offering, Loveyapa, is out in cinemas. The film's story addresses many relevant problems like body shaming, social media manipulation, gaslighting, and deepfakes but does not unpack any of the issues nicely. Not only this, but the lead stars also failed to impress with their performances in this routine romantic comedy. However, many of the supporting cast are praise-worthy in the film. If you are planning to watch Loveyapa in cinemas this weekend, it is highly recommended that you read this review first to get a gist about the film.
Story
The story revolves around Gaurav Sachdeva, aka Gucci (played by Junaid), and Bani (played by Khushi), who love each other, but when they try to take their relationship to the next level, they face challenges from Atul Kumar Sharma - Bani's dad - (played by Ashutosh Rana). Her father asks them to exchange their cell phones as a part of a challenge to check their level of trust. After this, things start getting bitter between them as many things unfold in front of them.
This story of doubt and love test ends at a point which is a bit emotional, but by the time it reaches the end, the story falls apart, and it seems that its ending could have been made better. In the first part, the story keeps you engaged and entertains you a lot, but the second part seems a little abrupt. To an extent, you will be able to guess things in advance. Despite all the fights and doubts, Bani's father accepts her relationship, which is quite predictable.
Acting
Junaid Khan is the weakest link in Loveyapa. Junaid fails to impress the audience in expressing the right emotions on the big screen. His facial expressions do not match the dialogues and seem very loud in many scenes. At the same time, even those things which he can easily say in a low voice, he is seen shouting, which irritates the audience sometimes.
On the other hand, Khushi Kapoor is much better in the film than Junaid. She has improved a lot after her debut film, The Archies. But she seems to struggle in speaking Hindi properly; however, Khushi performed well in emotional scenes. Lastly, Ashutosh Rana outshines everyone in the film with his acting skills and in some of the scenes even overshadows the lead cast.
Direction
Director Advait Chandan has impressed with his work in the past as well; however, this time he has done a great job in the first part of the film, but the second half lacked the same magic. The animated representation of WhatsApp chat and Instagram chat gives the feeling as if everything is being said in front of you. Some of the scenes will surely impress the audience, like Junaid's bathroom scene and the fighting sequence between Bani and Gaurav. The director has even put less number of songs in the film, which is quite good looking at the storyline of the movie.
Verdict
Overall, the film is an average one. The film has an interesting plot of exchanging cell phones; however, it fails to take it to another level in the second half. Loveyapa also touches on the topic of deepfakes, but the film didn't do proper justice and failed to deep dive into it. The film is a one-time watch, but do not expect much from its climax and the lead stars.
