De De Pyaar De 2 Review: Ajay Devgn’s film is a passable entertainer

After watching De De Pyaar De 2, the one question that I have for director Anshul Sharma, co-writers Luv Ranjan and Tarun Jain, and DOP Sudhir Chaudhary is: what filters do you use? 

Almost every member of the cast glows with smooth well-moisturised skin, pink lips and perfectly coiffeured hair, moving through sprawling picture-perfect homes whether in London, Chandigarh or a Punjabi farmhouse. So much so that their looks almost become a distraction even during alleged heavy-duty emotional moments. This is a quintessential Bollywood family crowd-pleaser where extremely well-put together people indulge in antics that sometimes make you smile and at other times, make you exasperated at the sheer silliness of it all.

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And that’s a pity because there is a good premise to this film and its predecessor - age-gap romance. Hindi cinema has rarely explored the May-December love story, save for a one-off venture like the Amitabh Bachchan-Tabu starrer Cheeni Kum. (Of course, mainstream Bollywood routinely sees 50 and 60+ heroes romance 20 and 30+ heroines but that’s another story for another day!). What makes films like Cheeni Kum and De De Pyaar De 1 and 2 different is that they place the age issue front and centre of the discourse which is always fascinating to explore.

The 2019 romcom which forms the base for this film was a decent entertainer where Tabu, playing Ajay Devgn’s disgruntled separated wife, makes life difficult for her estranged husband and his young lover (Rakul Preet Singh). That movie, despite some bizarre scenes, touched upon the age and family imbroglios of the protagonists fairly well. One doesn’t know what warranted a second instalment but De De Pyaar De 2 stretches a similar idea though it has nothing new to add.

The tables turn in part 2. After battling 52-year-old Ashish’s (Ajay Devgn) family for approval, 20-something Ayesha (Rakul) now has a new frontier to conquer - seeking her parents' consent for marriage. Rakesh (R Madhavan) and Anju (Gautami Kapoor) proudly claim, “we are educated progressive people” but their beliefs are put to test when faced with their daughter’s much-older boyfriend. For all their “modernity”, they find it difficult to accept Ayesha’s choice with familiar concerns about societal judgement, the inappropriateness of their love and worries about Ashish’s past marriage. So far, so relatable.

In fact, pre-interval, De De Pyaar De 2 is quite breezy. Rakesh takes an instant dislike to Ashish and goes into the ‘Father of the Bride’ mode, determined to wreck the relationship. He comes up with the age-old trick - get a younger, more dashing suitable groom (Adi, played by Meezan Jafri) for his daughter in the hope she would be seduced by his charms. Ashish is plagued by doubts but is motivated by his counsellor friend Ronak (a delightful Jaaved Jaaferi) and Ayesha herself who doesn’t want to give up so easily on them.

The good parts first. There are some genuinely chuckle-worthy moments and sparkling exchanges between the main characters, many of them hat tips to pop culture and Ajay’s earlier films. The references to DDLJ and Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam are woven in smoothly, while Meezan Jafri’s entry - doing a split on two cars in a nod to Devgn’s own iconic Phool Aur Kaante motorcycle stunt - prompting Ashish to quip, “I did it 30 years ago,” lands as genuinely funny. In another sequence, Ashish cribs about Adi’s smooth moves on the dance floor - ‘Is this a Boogie Woogie contest that I will give him points on his dance?’ he asks while Jaaferi’s Ronak has some seriously cool one-liners as he advises and pokes fun at his love-lorn friend. There is even a hilarious ‘vashi-karan’ and Shaitan joke that an angry Madhavan cracks alluding to the power Ashish seems to be holding over his daughter (remember how the two actors faced off in Shaitan last year?).

Despite all these fun moments, the reason why De De Pyaar De 2 fails to make a mark is because of its tonal inconsistencies and downright silly plot points. The characters come off as plastic, and the way the conflicts unfold makes it hard to genuinely care about what happens to them. The background score is loud, the sequences exaggerated, and the overall treatment far too broad - when a subtler, more natural approach could have delivered a far stronger situational comedy.

However, it’s in the second half, especially towards the end, that the film completely derails, culminating in a caricatured climax. The conflict’s resolution is utterly banal, and the so-called plot twist designed to reunite the lovers is so silly that you genuinely wonder: What? When? Why? It dilutes the impact of the entire conversation.

Even within a humorous tone, this film had the potential to explore rich facets of modern family dynamics: the hypocrisies of parents who claim to be liberal yet remain driven by the need to control their children’s lives; a modern woman’s own complicated relationship with parents still bound by outdated ideas of right and wrong; the delicate navigation of family ties, beginning with the very way we address each other - and much more. These themes are briefly touched upon but never examined, ultimately falling by the wayside as the screenplay wavers between being a father-in-law vs son-in-law showdown, a father-daughter drama, or an over-the-top romantic comedy.

Just like the film, the performances are a mixed bag. Ajay Devgn is the weakest link, appearing disengaged from everything happening around him. He sleepwalks through the role, and not once do his embarrassment, dilemmas, or even his love for Ayesha feel convincing. Rakul Preet looks stunning but her acting deficiencies emerge in the emotional moments; her pitch is too loud, and the Gen Z–brat attitude never quite lands as endearing.

In comparison, R. Madhavan and Gautami Kapoor are excellent as the fun yet subtly devious parents. Madhavan, in particular, gets some great moments and brings a much-needed sense of sobriety. But the absence you feel most is Tabu’s. You realise just how much gravitas she brought to the first film - how effortlessly she moved between comedy and seriousness and held everything together.

De De Pyaar De 2 is fairly entertaining and a stress-free watch - perfect for a lazy OTT evening - but if the makers are considering a part 3 (I hope not!), then may we please request them to de de Tabu?

 Rating: 2.5