Nadaaniyan can be translated as innocence or immaturity. Both values are present in Shauna Gautam’s Hindi-language directorial debut, which is set in the kind of posh school popularised by producer Karan Johar’s films.
At Falcon High, a kerfuffle balloons into a crisis for 17-year-old Pia (Khushi Kapoor). Keen on avoiding an overly friendly classmate, the ultra-rich Pia pays Arjun (Ibrahim Ali Khan) to pose as her boyfriend. Arjun is a debating whiz, muscular and middle class by Pia’s standards as well as this film’s understanding of that economic bracket.
It’s meant to be a strictly transactional relationship that will boost Pia’s social standing. But the faking inevitably leads to making out. Further complications are supplied by the usual misunderstandings that imperil young love as well as Pia’s bickering parents Neelu (Mahima Chaudhary) and Rajat (Suniel Shetty).
Written by Riva Razdan Kapoor, Ishita Moitra and Jehan Handa, the 118-minute movie is overtly mindful of the problems posed by Pia’s behaviour. Pia is practically renting Arjun’s services, but she is conscious of her privilege as well as sensitive to Arjun’s relatively lower social status (down with elitism and classism, she says). When a version of buyer’s remorse ensues, it’s not Pia’s fault whatsoever.
The mostly breezy and quickly forgettable film rolls out the requisite packaging needed to justify itself. You have the bright lighting, modish costumes and appropriate Gen Z lingo, but not the compelling characters or unexpected scenarios that might generate emotional investment in exaggerated conflicts.
There is at least some semblance of purpose in Pia’s journey. Although Nadaaniyan serves as Ibrahim Ali Khan’s acting debut, it’s Khushi Kapoor, by now a veteran of three films about young romance, who has the more engaging track.
Arjun’s response to Pia’s wavering, his relationship with his own parents (played by Dia Mirza and Jugal Hansraj) and even his scholastic ambitions all pale before Pia’s journey from poor little rich girl looking to buy herself peace of mind to realising her own worth.
