Kho Gaye Hum Kahan is a Hindi film about the lives of three close friends and the impact of social media on their lives. The film is directed by Arjun Varain Singh and written by Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti and Arjun Varain Singh. Starring Siddhant Chaturvedi, Adarsh Gourav, Ananya Panday, and Kalki Koechlin.
Read the summary and review below.
Streaming on Netflix.
Plot Summary
Three childhood friends, Imaad Ali (Siddhant Chaturvedi), Ahana Singh (Ananya Panday) and Neil Pereira (Adarsh Gourav) are incredibly close, but are focused on different aspects of life. Neil is trying to grow his career as a fitness coach while maintaining a “situationship” with one of his influencer clients, Lola. Ahana, on the other hand, was recently dumped by her boyfriend, Rohan and is finding ways to deal with her heartbreak. Meanwhile, Imaad who inherited a fortune from his mother, spends his time on his stand-up comedy, hooking up with his Tinder dates and occasionally seeing a therapist.
The three of them support each other as much as they can. They are honest when their friends need to hear the truth. They are there at important events to give as much moral support as possible. Heck, they invest their money, time and career into a common business. But the main obstacle that prevents them from truly coming together is the fact that each of them are actually alone when in face with social media.
Imaad is a Tinder addict, Ahana posts fake photos and stories on social media to make her ex-boyfriend jealous, and Neil has a habit of using the anonymity of social media as a rage outlet.
The whole film runs through how each of these characters discovered the impact of social media on their lives and learnt to be better people in the process.
Movie Review
After massive action films like Jawan and bubblegum shows like The Archies, we are finally treated with something different. Kho Gaye Hum Kahan is a coming-of-age film that intends to be relatable to the Gen Zs of the world. The story focuses on the struggles of the younger generation, and how each character works to overcome them. This is a section where the film excels and I could see how young girls share Ahana’s sentiment of wanting to make their exes jealous.
However, this well-intended goal has also seeming made the plot very predictable. The story doesn’t surpass the general imagination, and therefore, halfway through the film, viewers could easily guess how the climax will play out for each of the different characters. The only unknown would be the character’s reaction to those adversities. In the end, the movie lacks the element of surprise, but it delivers on the relatability factor.
The performance of the cast were not particularly spectacular either, perhaps given their role. Siddhant Chaturvedi’s character, Imaad had the most potential and had the most breadth for the actor to display his craft, but it did not feel like this advantage was fully utilized by Chaturvedi. His comedic timing was great and he displayed great charisma (given that the character is a playboy), but it felt like he could’ve fleshed out the character’s story arc better.
Ananya Pandey was also decent as the loving but underconfident girl, Ahana Singh. The character is in-line with some of the other characters Pandey has played in her previous works, so this role would feel comfortable to her by now.
The other main actor, Adarsh Gourav also did a solid job. He portrayed the suppressed frustrations of Neil Pereira well, and he carried his character possibly as best as he could, especially considering the physical transformation needed for the role. Nevertheless, contrary to Chaturvedi, Gourav seem limited by his character in this film. Knowing that Gourav can carry a film like The White Tiger, it seems like he could do a lot more if there was more breadth to his character. However, that being said, he did do his character, Neil decent justice.
But more importantly, beneath all the plot, music and characters of Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, is a story with a lot of heart. It is a film that intends to subtly show the impact of social media on today’s younger generation. The messaging is not intrusive, not overpowering- just the right amount for one to figure out themselves without feeling like one is being spoon-fed. And for that, it is worth at least a one-time watch.
Verdict
5.5/ 10