'Dear Zindagi' review: Alia Bhatt turns in a nuanced performance, SRK is charming as usual

In a scene from the film, Kaira ( Alia Bhatt), a cinematographer who is heartbroken, bites into a green chilli. As her eyes cloud over, she looks at her friend Fatima ( Ira Dubey) and says, “The chilli is pungent.’’ Tears, silly fears and frailties are all part of life. So brave it we must. This kind of sums up the life lesson writer-director Gauri Shinde’s second directorial film imparts. But unlike her first film 'English Vinglish' that hit the bulls-eye subtly, here the message is hammered. Of course some of the writing has merit. There are funny and clever one-liners. There are numerous analogies drawn to explain the innumerable relationships one encounters in today’s fastfleeting urban life. Some of this makes you chuckle, some of it makes you cry.

However, the first half of the film meanders. Things actually begin to look up just before intermission when Shah Rukh Khan makes an appearance.

As said earlier, the protagonist, played by Bhatt, is messed up when it comes to relationships. To analyse why she is the way she is, Bhatt makes an appointment with doctor Jehangir Khan (Shah Rukh Khan) in Goa. As he meticulously picks up the pieces of her past and pieces her together, the film allows the viewer too to confront some of their own anxieties.

Bhatt turns in a nuanced performance and Khan tempts you to seek out a therapist. If you’re in the mood to do some soul-searching this weekend, this film could be good for you.