 It is
all about love! Yes, Gautam Menon's remake of Minnale deals with this
subject in a very Bambaiya-ishtlye. One doesn't know whether it's a
better or a little diluted version of the original. All the same, the
enthusiastic new team of RHTDM has done a very sincere job.
RHTDM is about Madhav Shastri (Madhavan), a
mechanical engineering student who prefers to stay away from class and play a
dada outside. Obviously, Maddy can't stand Sam (Saif Ali Khan) who is a
favourite among the girls. He himself has some kind of an aversion towards girls
and keeps fingering Sam for playing Kanhaiyya and sometimes
Bhaiyya to them. So much so that Maddy even calls for a boxing bout with
Sam to prove his superiority! After college, they go their seperate
ways.
Three years pass by. Sam goes
away to America and Maddy takes up the job of an instructor in an institute.
Still single, his father keeps coaxing Maddy to find a girl for himself than
spend time loafing with his friends. Maddy, who's always been very wary of girls
(for reasons best known to him) bullies his father that he is yet to find his
kinda girl.
The inevitable finally
happens one rainy night when Maddy spots his lady love and goes completely nuts
over her, driving his father and friends crazy. He spots her the second time at
a marriage, and all he gets to know is her name, Reena Malhotra (Diya Mirza).
Finally, the third time, he spots her at a signal and goes running after her and
manages to get friendly with Reena's friend Shruti (Tanaz Currim). He finally
has Reena's telephone number but just cannot muster the courage to speak to
her.
Another problem is that Reena is
engaged to a childhood friend Rajeev. Maddy is disappointed but his friends and
father force him to impersonate Rajeev and try his luck. Maddy does get lucky.
By the end of the five days that he spends with her, the Brahmin boy turns into
a non-veggie to win over the heart of the girl. And it works! Reena is also
crazy about Maddy now. But before Maddy can even savour his happiness, it
crash-lands with Rajeev's arrival.
 When Reena comes to know that the real Rajeev is
someone else and not the one she has fallen for, she begins hating Maddy for it.
For Maddy it's an even bigger shock because Rajeev is none other than his
college rival Sam. But Maddy's trump card is the paanch din that he spend
with Reena. No, the film is not a Woh Saat Din, but the paanch din
are very crucial to the story!
There is
nothing new that the Hindi version of Minnale has to offer except for a
very promising and confident Madhavan who makes his debut. He qualifies in every
department and fits into the typical Hindi film hero slot (despite his
unconventional looks. Don't miss those buck teeth). His acting has shades of the
heroes Madhavan has been impressed with all his life (notably SRK). All Madhavan
needs to do is lose a few pounds and we definitely see a new star on the
horizon.
Diya Mirza is just a pretty
face. Saif Ali Khan is the one who brings the maximum excitement in the film
with his presence and performance. The actor has definitely come a long away as
a performer. Hard work and conviction has finally paid off for the
guy.
Gautam Menon is definitely a very
promising director. One expected him to have a Southern touch in his Hindi film
(most of the South Indian directors often fail to get rid of their Southern
nativity) but Menon has handled that pretty well. Harris Jayaraj is impressive
but has a Rahman hangover. On the technical side, the cinematography,
choreography and art direction is very up-market and lavish. Rehnaa Hain
Terre Dil Mein is definitely worth one dekko.
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