2 States — should instead have been called 2 Halves

‘2 States’ could very well have been named ‘2 Halves’ because each half of the movie seems to have been handled by a different Director. Most of the first half and especially everything picturized at IIM-A feels too rushed and disconnected. In fact you feel so distant that you begin shifting in your seat out of frustration. It is when the parents enter the picture that things begin getting better.

The second half is astronomically better than the first and keeps you hooked, managing to compensate for the first half with a well rounded and satisfying race to its climax. Interestingly, it is Arjun Kapoor who is the weak link of the movie. Yes, he is supposed to portray a character who is soft spoken and unimpressive but he comes across as dull and boring, quite unlike Shahid Kapoor in ‘Jab We Met’ who played a similar character while managing to stand out himself. ‘2 States’ progresses as a narration by Krish Malhotra (Arjun Kapoor) to his psychiatrist but ironically his end of the story actually feels aloof and distant, largely due to his lacklustre performance.

Alia Bhatt charms yet again with a disarming performance that is quite reminiscent of her role in ‘Highway’. But it is the parents who are the scene stealers. Ronit Roy is powerful and towering in yet another Udaan-esque performance, Amrita Singh is brilliant as the hugely irritating and petty, yet loving Punjabi mother, Revathy and Shivkumar Subramaniam are in top form as the loving yet intentionally funny Tamil parents.

The songs majorly play spoilsport and it’s tough to believe that Shankar Ehsaan Loy are behind such uninspired compositions, none of which stay back with you. In one particularly out of place song, Arjun who barely shakes a limb throughout the movie dances wildly to Punjabi tunes making it rather unbelievable in a literal sense.

Also, Director Abhishek Varman excels at handling some of the stereotypes and nuances about Punjabis and Tamils as per the original book. All in all, a good second half, a well rounded end but an extremely weak first half and lead actor along with not too much chemistry sums up why this movie does not become the landmark film that it could have, given its subject matter and it’s relevance in the Indian context.

P.S. My favourite dialogue from the film: Amrita Singh to an auto driver in Ahmedabad — “Suno bhaisaab, tum Gujarati log meethe mein kya khaate ho? Tumhari dal?”