Woh Lamhe

Plot synopsis:
In the glitzy entertainment capital of Mumbai as dusk descends, actress Sana Azim (Kangana Ranaut) slits her wrists in a hotel room in an attempt to kill herself. When this news reaches film-maker Aditya Garewal (Shiney Ahuja), he is devastated. Aditya has been searching for Sana, who was intensely involved with him and who had mysteriously disappeared from his life without any explanation three years ago, only to surface now in what could be the last moments of her life.
As Aditya waits outside of the ICU, praying to be reunited with her, he is hurled back into the perfumed days and champagne nights of his memory, when Sana played the role of a lover and mentor to a struggling Aditya.
Everything was perfect, except for an enemy which lurked in the shadows, waiting to destroy their love. Sana is a patient with schizophrenia, who has a excessive hallucinations of a girl named Rani, who actually doesn't exist, which gradually ruins Sana's both life and career. When Aditya realizes that the only way he can save Sana from total devastation is to take her away from Bollywood and the vested interests that threaten to destroy her completely, he runs away with Sana putting his career on the line. Those moments lived in the sanctuary of their love are like an oasis in the desert.
Until one day, suddenly, she disappears, leaving him with unanswered questions.
Aditya tries his best to save Sana from her mental illness but fails. Sana remains now only in his memories and past moments.

Tags: romantic

Review:
Supposedly based on Mahesh Bhatt's relationship with popular actress Parveen Babi, the film shows Babi in a rather negative light through Kangana Ranaut's schizophrenic young actress Sana Azim, and follows her relationship with a young filmmaker named Aditya who she falls in love with (that's supposed to be Mahesh Bhatt).
Quite expectedly, Aditya is presented as a kind-hearted and supportive man.I don't know if this portrayal of Parveen Babi's life is correct, but it is certainly unpleasant for those who have known and liked Babi throughout the years.
It is not the first time Bhatt wrote a film with a character based on Parveen.
But unlike Arth, this film was made a year after Babi's death, so one can never know if the characterisation and the story are completely correct, though we all know that it's just based on this relationship and is not a lifelike depiction of it.
Whatever there, the film is very alluring and visually pleasing, although it gets to be a bit disturbing at some points.The film belongs to Kangana Ranaut, who is astonishing as Sana.
This is another role showcasing her talent in playing emotionally disturbed characters, and despite her very young age, she handles the rather complex character with great ease and looks beautiful and mature.
Shiny Ahuja provides good support but at some scenes annoyingly overacts.
Shiny Ahuja not only looks good but has acted so naturally.
Randhawa making his debut was a true villain and of course Kangana was better than she was in Gangster!!!!for those of you who have not seen the movie do go and watch it.the soundtrack is amazing too!!!!!
i read somewhere that Kangana had a hard time getting into the role which is apparently based on Parveen Babi?!
one wonders where reality ends and make believe takes over regarding Parveen Babi's life story.
This film deftly covers the subject of how one deals with personal ambitions and portrays a harrowing look into the condition of paranoid schizophrenia.In both, it succeeds and is very watch-able.
Kangana Ranaut's character has to deal with what her life is becoming, while Shiny Ahuja's character has tough choices to make about what he wants from his.Ranaut gives a powerful performance, filling out every nuance and facet of her character.
Shiny Ahuja brilliantly plays his character, emoting the choices he goes through.
What a superbly enacted drama about the entangled relationships between the personalities of the Indian film world, where everyone is out to use each other to climb the proverbial unsteady ladder to success.This is the first Hindi film I have seen that has honestly and beautifully presented the difficult subject of paranoid schizophrenia in cinematic form.
Kanagana Ranaut is outstanding as the female protagonist, Sana Azeem, who plays a top actress who has made a Faustian pact in order to achieve fame and success.
Every part of her body and mind is dictated by media sponsors, who decide all aspects of her life.Into this mix appear a struggling director and his partner, who sees their main chance in Sana  a ticket ride to success.
He is a superb foil to Sana, where the former starts out as disreputable, but charming character, but then slowly falls in love with the beautiful Sana when he sees her vulnerability.Sana's frequent bouts of hallucinatory attacks  where she sees a female alter ego, an absolutely evil bitch, who pursues her relentlessly  strains her relationship with all the men in her life.
As a boy he witnessed his own father, afflicted with mental illness, being subjected to electric shocks to cure his condition.When Sana herself was sent to a psychiatric ward to be given electric shocks, Aditya kidnaps her and takes to a safe refuge in the countryside, where he helps her to recuperate.
It is not easy as her condition goes through a see-saw of emotions  one day, she's well, then the next day she's has recurring attacks of the imaginary female tormentor.The scenes where Sana enacts her schizoid episodes are superbly handled and absolutely terrifying.
Her scenes were spooky and intense, and so was the imaginary character in her mind, played by unknown actress whose terrifying visage will remain in viewer's mind long after he/she has left the cinema theatre.Shiny's transformation from sleazy director to sensitive lover was remarkable and natural.
He is an actor worth watching out for.I would recommend this movie to all who are interested in excellent performances, direction, and soundtrack.
The cast did an amazing job acting out their parts and they possess a single talent that captures the audience, making the viewer feel as if they truly know the people in the movie.
The movie does a good job of showcasing the life of a show girl.
the pantie throwing scene and the rape scene are not very "Indian movie" type but the director has placed the scenes pretty well to portray the character of the characters.
The film is said to be based on Parveen Babi's life but I don't believe it does full justice to the late actress.
One such scene is where at a film ceremony, Kangana throws her undy at Shiny or the rape scene (which looked quite fake and forced).
To sum it up, Woh Lamhe is a good enough one-time watch.
But I would have liked to see a movie about the real Parveen Babi, her life, her career, her struggle and her survival..
first of all i was not interested in watching the movie .i thought what is going to be special it is going to be just another love story but later when i saw the movie i thought this is one of the best movies .thank god i did not miss such a wonderful movie.the story is a real life story about an actress and a director."kangana" plays the actress and "shiney" the director the love for each other and the affection they share will be amazing.their on screen chemistry was very good the way it is picturised is outstanding."kangana" and "shiney" who played the lead were mind blowing.there are no words to describe their acting skills.the music of the film was too good the songs were very pleasant.they were apt for the situations.overall the film is wonderful.
One of the best romantic movie and such a beautiful love story.....
This movie reminded me of a not so much of a hit film of 1993 called "Phir Teri Kahaani Yaad Aayee", starring Pooja Bhatt.
Kangana looks good in the movie.
those who are reading this review without watching this movie had better go and check this one out and then come back..
I committed the same error as to check out some reviews and i got comments like "I was surprised that bollywood can produce such a movie" "you had better be in a serious mood to appreciate the film"..
to put any such confusions to rest .Its def a great movie a general "hollywoodish " feel permeates through out,but its a bollywood entertainer.and what other scenario is better than bollywood itself.we have beautiful actresses,parties and a cynical upcoming director and his sidekick and we have philandering egoistic actors..
...Its a beautiful love story though one expects a kind of a different story after hearing shiny say "My dear,don't expect anything from me" Kangana as the schizophrenic actress is a natural..and shiny is no less though his underplaying is sometimes a little unnatural but most of the times a relief...its a simple love story set in exotic conditions,just a simple love story and as always it strikes a chord.
Music is fantastic and very pleasant to hear with expressive lyrics.Watch "A Beautiful Mind" for understanding what REAL "paranoid schizophrenia" means.Commodification of the woman's body is not just one of the themes in the movie but also is very real / factual when u look at as an outsider.Kangana's acting is good but need not follow mallika or bipasha.......Shiny needs more expressions shining on his face apart from dialogs delivery.Ending is horrible, abrupt end like the time out in football ??????
With Kangana her character Sana has a mental problem that it costs her her life and her boyfriend played by Shiny to take care of (Gia had her mother for those who don't know).
Mahesh Bhatt has claimed that the movie is the story between him and Parveen Babi.Sana is a famous actress who is very insecure and imagines a lot of things which are unreal.
Her mother, boy friend and everyone else for that matter.She meets a struggling Director played by Shiny Ahuja(the role of Mahesh Bhatt).
I've just finished watching this movie and honestly the film has surprised me its not the usual story that you see in Bollywood, Loosely based on the relationship of Mahesh Bhatt and the late Parveen Babi.
The lead actors Kangana and Shiny portray the roles maturely and it makes u believe and see how full of two faced people the showbiz business is.
Sana a popular actress in the film industry has everything until her manager Nikhil rapes her and abuses her when she declines his work orders etc she then sees him with another woman, enter Adi (Shiney Ahuja) a struggling director who at a party gets the attention of the actress by insulting her and her ego...
Then time goes Nikhil gets jealous when Sana does Adi's film then love blossoms between the two but at first she disagrees to the movie but since her mother needs the money she agrees this annoys sanas manager nikhil.
The actress then realises how she is being used and hurt and all this pain and anger makes u go mad and she gets schizophrenic starts seeing a girl named rani who taunts sana 24/7.
Mahesh Bhatt has taken a chapter out of the life of his former lover, the late actress Parveen Babi (a woman whose life and death was so shrouded in secrecy that it would be virtually impossible not to imagine certain aspects of her life while being transposed to celluloid) and woven a beautiful tapestry, perhaps with the hopes of making it easier to take in and digest.
I imagine that Babi's life was far more tormented than portrayed in the film.
Let it also be noted that this is Bhatt's second telling of his life with Babi (he also made the 1982 film 'Arth' which was semi-autobiographical about his life with the actress).The film begins with Sana i.e. the Parveen Babi character (played by Kangana Ranaut) slowly attempting to commit suicide, alone in a hotel room where she has locked herself away having being lost and tormented for so long.
The rest of the story is then told in flashback by her lover Aditya (played by Shiny Ahuja) the morning after her nearly lifeless body is found in the hotel.
The love story between Sana and Aditya is tempestuous at first but slowly blossoms as the film progresses.
I particularly like the way the it was written that Sana is allowed to have at least a moments of joy (despite the fact that the signs of her illness are shown earlier on in the movie) before the disease because to fully manifest itself and eventually take over her.
Ahuja also takes it to the next level by delivering another fine performance, and proving himself to be one of the finest understated actors working in Bollywood today.Woh Lamhe is a tragic love story, it's a hauntingly beautiful tapestry of what was and what could have been.
I just saw this one and still processing it, but here's a few comments anyhow.I found Kangana's and the entire movie's portrayal of schizophrenia pretty well done.
Kangana succeeds because she is able to portray a schizophrenic AND a likable, sweet woman - and these are the two sides that Shiny Ahuja's character finds himself torn between.I thought his character was a bit less well developed.
It is based on the real-life story of Parveen Babi, a famous Bollywood-actress in the 70's (Zeenat Aman's main rival, so to say), who was also destroyed by her mental illness and the pressure of stardom.
Saying it is a Gia-rip-off shows you just didn't do your research, and is an offense to these two excellent movies which only ebar a superficial resemblance to each other.The connection with Parveen Babi's life and Mahesh Bhatt's role in it, makes this movie even more interesting.
But at the same time, one cannot help but wonder: is this tribute also a way for Bhatt t o redeem himself, cleanse himself from any mistakes he feels he might have made with the real life tragedy of Parveen?
This background makes the movie a must-watch for Bollywood fanatics.
Mahesh Bhatt made 3 films on Parveen Babi,first being ARTH(1982) which was a great film,then PHIR TERI KAHAANI YAAD AAYI(1993) and finally WOH LAMHE.
The film brought back Shiny Ahuja and Kangana after GANGSTER the same year.
The film is a fictitious take on the love story of Bhatt and Babi directed by Mohit Suri.
It starts off superbly though the panty scene could be avoided, yet otherwise the love story is smoothly narrated, the breakdown scenes are awesome, the second half does drag a bit but yet the scene when Kangana finds a bug in their room is awesome, The climax too is awesome but there are flaws like it's not explained what happened to Sana after running away?
Also the end is different from real life but afterall we should watch it as a fiction.Direction by Mohit Suri is awesome Music is superb,Chal Chale is the best song,Kya Mujhe Pyaar Hai is awesome too, Tu jo Nahin is an underrated song and is superbShiny Ahuja was an upcoming talent those days and he does a great job in his role, Kangana Ranaut is superb, few actresses can play such a complex character so well, except her diction she is superb Shaad Randhawa made an effective debut, Purab Kohli is superb as Shiny's friend,Masumeh is terrific too in her small role,rest are okay.
Sana Azim approaches an acclaimed (by Time magazine, even) Bollywood movie director who has badmouthed her on numerous occasions and as a result of this, the paths of the controversial and prideful actress and the brutally honest director cross until he sees that she may not be as shallow as he initially believed.
I found the dialogue relating moments in life to a sand castle that's knocked down on the beach touching.Then there's the darker aspects of the film that touch on mental illness, specifically paranoid schizophrenia.
Kangana Ranaut is a great actress who I think is especially good when it comes to more quiet and intense scenes.
Shiny Ahuja mostly has one expression in the film, but aside from that, he portrays emotion more believably than the average Bollywood actor.
I read that this movie is based on Parveen Babi's life, and if that's the case, it certainly made me want to watch some of her films.
This movie is similar to "Khoya Khoya Chand" both starring Shiny Ahuja and both based on two actresses who led a disturbed and or disillusioned life and both ending in a untimely death.
This movie is based on the life of Parveen Babi, an actress who was hounded, used and dumped by the "Filmi Types" that drove her to a spiritual solace.
Either way, she is brilliantly portrayed on the screen, by Kangana Ranaut.
Both Ahuja and Ranaut, are casting coup for Mahesh Bhatt, who is in the upper echelon of good Indian directors (and so is his daughter Pooja Bhatt).
The movie makes us to believe that one person took advantage of her, but in real life, quite a few sinister types took advantage of her, but the last boy friend, was the one who tipped her mental scale.
She spent most of her time trying to get even with the real threat (that was construed as imagined?) There was no threat from a woman as this movie leads up to believe.
The best line in the movie is when Sam says to Aditya, "My type's can easily get over this-but what are you going to do?" which, very much sums up the value and sentiments of Real Life vs Reel life and Good vs Evil..
today,i just watched this movie.such a good romantic and sad movie seen after a long time.i just loved every moment of the movie.the movie is a epitome of true love shown by "shiny ahuja",he has done a superb acting,he made me cry in the end.he is a versatile actor,his bond with "kangana ranaut" was ultimate.the song "bin tere"is a real melody come straight from the heart.i would rate this movie 9 because i dint find anything wrong.superb cast,excellent music,fantastic acting.what we need after this.really its a movie who has loved someone and lost it.the movie starts with a rape scene which can be avoided,but kangana ranaut manages her role perfectly whenever she has to modulate.songs were really good,the best part of all the songs are timing,they have really come at the right time.i would definitely watch again..
Parveen Babi's rise to fame, her involvement with Mahesh Bhatt, her downward spiral into mental disease  this is a story that has been told very well before in Mahesh Bhatt's film Arth.
Mahesh Bhatt retools the now familiar tale and Mohit Suri directs an amazing cast of newcomers and near newcomers in this tale of one woman's struggle to come to terms with her success, her madness and her vulnerability.Shiny Ahuja shines as the brash movie director Aditya Grewal who courts the lovely, talented and victimized Sana Azim.
Sana is played by the luminous Kangana Ranaut.
You might wonder if this story was worth remaking at all But I believe it was, just to showcase the immense talent of Shiny Ahuja and Kangana Ranaut.
One thing bothers me a bit, is this Mr. Mahesh Bhatt's attempt to whitewash his own involvement in the Parveen Babi affair?