Main Vaapas Aaunga (Hindi) is one of the latest box-office releases. The romantic drama film directed by Imtiaz Ali stars Diljit Dosanjh, Naseeruddin Shah, Vedang Raina and Sharvari. Since the director is known for popular movies such as Jab We Met (2007), Love Aaj Kal (2009), Rockstar (2011), Highway (2014), Tamasha (2015), and Jab Harry Met Sejal (2017), expectations from it have been high among the discerning viewer base.
Reviews have described the movie as a "deeply emotional, human-centric Partition drama", though critics are somewhat divided on its execution.
Across almost every review, Naseeruddin Shah is named the absolute anchor of the film. Playing the elderly, dementia-stricken Ishar on his deathbed, his performance is widely praised as masterclass. "He conveys decades of repressed trauma and longing without slipping into melodrama," Indian Express suggested.
Imtiaz Ali is credited with keeping a neutral, humanistic perspective on the horrors of 1947, avoiding a simplistic "us vs. them" narrative. The cinematography by Sylvester Fonseca and the musical score by AR Rahman are highly praised for giving the film a rich, truly cinematic texture.
The primary criticism lies in the film's 166-minute runtime. Several critics noted that the first half meanders and the screenplay by Ali and Nayanika Mahtani relies too heavily on familiar Partition tropes, making certain plot points highly predictable.
Main Vaapas Aaunga features songs like Kya Kamaal Hai, Maskara, Ishq Mastana.
