If you have lived in a metro city in India, a few things that come to mind include traffic, crowds, and potholes that might break your back or leg. But in Anurag Basu’s world, these overbearing elements skip the station. There are no people frustrated with the never-ending traffic, cursing the local governing bodies over the lack of infrastructure, or commuters involuntarily forced to travel like cattle in trains and buses.
The Plot
Instead, what you have is a beautiful musical that explores the complexities of love and relationships at different stages of life. Metro… In Dino primarily revolves around Neena Gupta and her two daughters (played by Sara Ali Khan and Konkona Sensharma) and their relationships with their respective partners. Aditya Roy Kapur plays a man who accidentally walks into Sara’s life, while Ali Fazal and Fatima Sana Shaikh play a married couple and best friends with Kapur.
Once you make peace with this fantasy metro city setup, where streets are clean and no one is pushing each other or cursing, Anurag Basu draws you into a world where he focuses on love in contemporary settings. Thankfully, the idea of contemporary love in the movie is not limited to throwing around new-age terms like situationship, ghosting, breadcrumbing, soft launch, hard launch, and more.
Rather, it offers a nuanced take on relationships at every stage—from a 60-year-old embracing her freedom while crossing paths with a former love, to a middle-aged woman finding the courage to stand up for herself when her husband cheats on her, to a young woman in her 20s following her instincts. There is something for everyone in this film that is all heart.
A Musical Delight
Anurag Basu, who directed and co-wrote the film, is known for taking audiences on musical journeys of love and romance with movies like Barfi!, Life in a… Metro, Ludo, and Jagga Jasoos. This time, he once again joins hands with his long-time musical collaborator Pritam to elevate a beautiful tale of love and relationships in a modern setup. The music and narrative seamlessly integrate to create a thrilling emotional ride that will make you laugh, smile, tear up, and empathise with the characters.
Pritam, along with his team, has delivered magic with the film’s music. The songs and background score play a major role in elevating scenes and giving the audience an emotional high.
Performances
There was potential for many actors to go overboard with emotions at several points. But that is another of Basu da’s strengths: he manages to bring out the best in his actors. Whether it is Aditya Roy Kapur playing a fun-loving travel vlogger who doesn’t take life too seriously (without making it a mockery) or Neena Gupta being in her element as the bindass woman who has just tasted freedom, every actor gets the space to shine.
It was also a delight to see the onscreen pairings. From Pankaj Tripathi and Konkona Sensharma’s playful yet morally complicated relationship to Ali Fazal and Fatima Sana Shaikh’s best friends turned married couple, every pairing is a hit in this tale. As far as performances are concerned, the actors do not disappoint and live up to Basu’s vision.
Final Verdict
At a runtime of 2 hours and 42 minutes, it may seem like a long film, but it never feels tedious, as you gradually feel like you’ve become one with the characters of this world. The heartwarming storytelling combined with Pritam’s score makes this a perfect theatrical watch that will actually make you want to embrace your near and dear ones.