Back in 2003 when the Shahid Kapoor, Amrita Rao, and Shehnaz Treasury-starrer Ishq Vishk released, director Ken Ghosh stated that it wasn’t a very deep film. Well, we guess he said that to use it as an excuse to palm off all the misogyny, blatant objectification of women, and ridiculous love lessons that glorified patriarchal beliefs. Watching the film almost two decades ago sure was fun, but now in 2021, it feels problematic. And here’s why.
Image Credit: Ishq Vishk, Ramesh Taurani
Let’s start with Payal, the docile sanskari girl, who lived most of her life in the ‘friendzone’, fasting for Rajeev on Karva Chauth. We know the festival holds a special place in most Indian married women’s lives, but fasting for your college boyfriend, like seriously?
Moving on to her motto in life — If you love someone, set them free. If they come back to you, they’re yours. If they don’t, they never were… I mean, come on! If anyone needed a love guru in that movie it was Payal and not Rajeev! What nonsense!
Let’s move on to her expectations. The Alibaug trip is the tipping point of her relationship with Rajeev. What was she really expecting from a trip with her sex-starved boyfriend who climbed pipes and windows to get laid? Rajeev and Mambo used to hit on their house help! Payal’s naivety is mind-boggling, and the director made her character look weaker by making her apologise after correctly slapping her boyfriend. The slap was legit and he deserved it!
Image Credit: Ishq Vishk, Ramesh Taurani
Now, let’s shift our attention to Rajeev, an absolute moron. First, he tries to force himself on his ‘pativrata’ girlfriend and then gets angry at her when she refuses to cave in. Worst, he justifies his actions by saying he’s a boyfriend and not a raste ka mawali. Like, dude! And he goes on. After Payal actually apologises (for God knows what!) he wants her to kiss him in front of everyone else. The audacity! Shouldn’t he be thanking his stars that he still had his genitals unharmed?
Image Credit: Ishq Vishk, Ramesh Taurani
And then after much rona-dhona, predictably, he moves on to the next hot thing in college. Enter Alisha, the carefree, skimpy-dressed Chika! And by this time, we know nobody, absolutely nobody should date Rajeev. But just as Payal had a bad choice in men, Alisha did no better.
Image Credit: Ishq Vishk, Ramesh Taurani
Now, after a few more songs, the director decides to flip the situation on Rajeev. Suddenly the guy who lusted for a girlfriend like Dolly and Saloni starts to lecture Alisha about her clothing choices – welcome to the world of Rajeev, the sexist! He’s now angry that his ‘hot’ girlfriend shows off too much skin and wants her to become like … wait for it … Payal!
Image Credit: Ishq Vishk, Ramesh Taurani
And that’s when you realise that Payal’s love, who she set free, was making a u-turn. Well, maybe Payal was the real love guru all along! Nah, she’s more like an agony aunt! And of course, following the true Bollywood Suraj Barjatiya storyline, Rajeev makes a comeback at the end and the salwar kameez-clad sanskari love triumphs against all evil!
Image Credit: Ishq Vishk, Ramesh Taurani
But does it? Watching the movie makes you think about how we unknowingly build perceptions about people and society. Every character in this movie is flawed in an extremely dangerous way. Payal wanted to stay seeped in age-old conventions, Rajeev is a chauvinist, Mambo is a creep, and Alisha, well there’s nothing much going for her except being rich and hot!
Don’t agree with us? Go and watch it again but this time, try and look beyond the love story that made such a great impression during the 2000s.
Lead Image Credit: Ishq Vishk, Ramesh Taurani
