Ibrahim Ali Khan and Khushi Kapoor’s much-hyped debut film, Naadaniyan, has released online and is creating quite the buzz, but not for reasons you’d expect.
Going by viral social media posts, the film has seemingly failed to impress audiences, with many taking to their handles to brutally troll the film for its weak performances, lack of chemistry, execution and ‘cringe’ dialogues. The movie which many labelled as “unwatchable”, was released on Netflix this weekend, promoting a flood of negative reviews online.
While the film boasted a significant budget, a promising storyline, and catchy songs, viewers were quick to criticize its execution. Social media was flooded with harsh reviews, with one user stating, “Unbelievably unbearable! They had the budget, a good story, and a nice song, but the lead pair lacked acting skills, chemistry, and screen presence too.”
Another review took an even harsher stance, saying, “UNWATCHABLE! #Naadaniyan is an excuse of a film where no one acts, directs, edits, and no one would’ve watched in cinemas!”
Some of the film’s dialogues have also gone viral for all the wrong reasons, with netizens cringing at the script. One particular line—”Itni hot ho ki global warming ki wajah bhi tum hee ho” (You’re so hot that you are the reason for global warming)—became a laughing stock online. Another scene drew mockery when a character tells Ibrahim’s character, “You are from Greater Noida” (as an insult), to which he responds, “I am from Greatest Noida.” Many called the exchange “peak Bollywood cringe.”
Khushi Kapoor’s acting was particularly criticized, with a viewer sarcastically commenting, “After watching Khushi Kapoor’s acting, my respect for Janhvi Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, and Suhana Khan has increased even more.”
Ibrahim Ali Khan, too, found himself at the receiving end of ridicule, with one user stating, “Ibrahim’s TikToks were better than this.”
Considering that KJo backed the film, many were led to believe that the film was widely panned as a poor attempt at recreating the magic of the director’s ‘Student of the Year‘ (SOTY), which marked the Bollywood debut of actors like Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan and Sidharth Malhotra.
“Naadaniyan trying so hard to be SOTY… You will never be them,” read a comment, while another added, “After watching #Naadaniyan on #Netflix, I feel Student of the Year was a masterpiece.”
Despite the overwhelming criticism, a small section of viewers defended the film, arguing that it was never meant for a mature audience. “#Naadaniyan was made to glue 12-19-year-old boys & girls to a teen rom-com they can relate to. People who are reviewing and expressing their dislike for the film must chill. You are not the audience of this film. This experiment may fail, but this genre will not.”
Still, the overall reception of Naadaniyan has been overwhelmingly negative, with many agreeing that the film was a misfire for Ibrahim who made his film debut with the movie. This was Khushi’s third film after ‘The Archies’ and ‘Loveyapa’
