Aadha Ishq review: Aamna Sharif-Gaurav Arora's series set out to be beautiful, became chaotic

2.5/5

Story:

Saahir (Gaurav Arora) has come back into Roma (Aamna Sharif)'s life and into her daughter Rene (Pratibha Ranta)'s life. Where will things go from here?

Review:

Aadha Ishq, as a series, is one that can barely hold your attention. Even though this show has good intentions at heart - to convey an intense, romantic story, there is nothing really new it can offer you.

As soon as we get into Aadha Ishq, we get to see Roma (Aamna Sharif) and Saahir (Gaurav Arora)'s love in a glimpse. Almost just as instantly, it shatters. There is a lot of confusion and chaos in the first scenes and some times, the dialogues, which do not help enhance a scene, are not even said out loud. While Aadha Ishq fails to make a first impression, it is unfair to judge this show already. However, the first episode drags on and you already pretty much know where this is going so big revelations don't leave you shocked either.

When re-introduced, Aamna is just there. She doesn't have a powerful entrance. On the other hand, Pratibha Ranta goes crazy as Rene.

Darsheel Safary as Jazz also does not fit in instantly. On the other hand, for some reason, it appears that Gaurav leads the story with the way he is introduced.

Knowing how the story is going to unfold (Rene knowing her mother was with Saahir), the plot does become ironic and in a way, comical.

Kunaal Roy Kapur in the role of a father Milind slowly grows on you. There are a lot of sexist comments going on in the show since his entry but as it progresses, you see that there's more to him. He's not the ideal man, far from it, but as an actor, Kunaal has really grown through this role.

Pooja Bamrrah is a surprise on the show. She is modern and actually takes an interest in her to-be step-daughter Rene's life and is pretty cool about everything. She is more of a friend than a mother could be.

And just like that, Rene's love story begins. There is no flow, no understanding how she fell for Saahir but only knowing that she did.

Aadha Ishq touches the sweet spot after Saahir defines what love really is - finding a place like home. However, it ends at that. The show is simply about you giving it second, third and many chances but it not particularly capturing your interest.

Vishal Karwal is seen in the series in a cameo role. He is adorable as always but has some depth in his character even in the cameo.

Pratibha's character grows as the series progresses. She is bold, fierce and what you would like to see.

Aadha Ishq suffers immensely because there is no transition between two scenes. The first interaction between Rene and Roma is an example of that.

Art forms play an important role in the series. Most of the scenes feature paintings, sketches and craft in some way.

For some reason, the scenes featuring the actors appear unnatural. When Roma gets the special painting and how she behaves after that, it is pretty weird. If you get turned on by looking at a painting, it just goes on to show you have never loved yourself before and promoting that thought in itself is pretty toxic. Soon, you do see how she is actually leading a toxic life and continues to choose that.

As low as Roma is on self-love and self-esteem, Rene makes up for that fourfold. She is so sure of herself that she makes her boyfriend Jazz dance to her tunes and then, has a trick up her sleeve to impress Saahir too. She is what a modern woman looks like, as compared to the lead.

The series is full of shayaris that dil-phenk aashiq can only understand and relate to. Most of it is cheesy but it might have worked if the series was executed well.

Suchita Pillai as Karen comes out-of-the-blue and is only there for a cameo. However, her character is that of the best friend everybody needs in their life.

The music in this series is almost one-toned. There is similar music throughout the show even if the story has many dimensions (even though they also are in a similar tone only).

The one good thing in Aadha Ishq is that it opens up a conversation on marital rape. The show just goes on to prove how being frank with your husband, who was once your most cherished, could end up in marital rape. This has actually been happening in societies and because of the kind of upbringing that a few men have, they believe that s** can resolve everything and Aadha Ishq proves that it is not the answer to an already messed up relationship.

Darsheel tries to be cool but he ends up unimpressive as an actor. Pratibha, who was impressive for most of Aadha Ishq, also ends up becoming a pain in the nerve by the end of the show.

There is a big revelation on the show but there is no surprise in it either. As much as I can understand and feel the pain of the characters, there is no moment that keeps me gripped to the series. Even when there is a huge revelation, nothing really happens after that. There has been a lot of focus on the pain even in a Kabir Singh or Broken But Beautiful 3 but that moment also comes to an end. Here, it just doesn't end.

Aadha Ishq ends on a note that there will be a second season of the show. It is very abrupt and makes you want to know, what really happened?

Verdict:

Aadha Ishq is a series that only people deep in love might get but still won't be able to completely connect to. While the thought behind it was beautiful, this one failed at the execution level. Make this your absolute last choice this weekend. In short, Aadha Ishq isn't even worth pauna of your time.