Yudi Jaitley: The Charming Novelist

Introduction

The world is full of stories. It’s said that within everyone resides a novel just waiting to be written. In real life, our stories can end in one of two ways: either happy or sad. As film lovers, we tend to keep our optimism and hope alive for a happy ending. The majority of global cinema’s filmmakers live off this philosophy to make sure their films are critically acclaimed and profitable. The movie Happy Ending, starring Saif Ali Khan as the charmer Yudi Jaitley, deals precisely with this concept: can we end the story of our life on a happy note?

Happy Ending has to be one of my favourite Bollywood movies of all time. For me, it had the perfect dose of romance, comedy, seriousness, and catchy yet soothing songs for the mind. Call me crazy, but I have watched this film more than one hundred times and still enjoy watching it. My family would shake their head and laugh when they saw it playing on the tv again. However, they would happily sit down to watch, enjoying it with the same level of enthusiasm.  

Main Character

I loved Saif Ali Khan’s character Yudi Jaitley. My philosophical questions would have us debating and conversing for the entire evening in his slick bachelor pad in Los Angeles if he existed in the physical realm. The filmmaker’s Raj and DK, who are known for their unconventional take on movies including Happy Ending, created a very kind but quirky character. Yudi is described as a commitment-phobic who runs away every time a beautiful woman on the street echoes the words “I love you.” He doesn’t despise the phrase but prefers to not live his life like a cheesy romantic movie. Funnily enough, Yudi considers himself to be a high tier celebrity for a bestselling book he wrote five years ago. (oops, I meant 5 1/2. Yudi was oddly specific on this). He decides not to write another word, because who would? He has fame, money, and girls. Why work when you have everything you desire?

He feels that by exerting himself to write again, he will turn out like his best friend, Montu. Who became an ‘oops father’ soon after marrying the first woman he laid his eyes on! To make it worse, Yudi’s ex-girlfriend thinks she is still his girlfriend. At the same time, he desperately tries to get the attention of the storyteller Aanchal Reddy. In Yudi’s own life, things take a funny turn when his car and money are taken away, and his life comes to a complete standstill. His only salvation is through his agent, Gary. He gets him a gig to write a script for the actor Armaan: the superstar trying to reinvent himself(Govinda). With all of this happening, we, as an audience, wonder whether Yudi will get a Happy Ending before the end credits begin to roll.

Personal Opinion

I related with Yudi on so many levels towards the beginning of this film. He was a writer. He had a few people he called his friends and generally preferred to spend his time alone with his inner voice, commonly referred to as Yogi. When his manager Gary tells him to write a script because “he has no choice,” I saw Yudi struggling. And I understood. Call it ego or arrogance, but Yudi had a hard time penning a single word. Why? Because he wasn’t expecting his life to come to a complete halt. And due to the lack of writing post his first novel, his creativity had dissolved. I understood his funny bitterness towards Aanchal Reddy’s character(Illeana D’Cruz) as we meet her in the first half. 

Aanchal Reddy

Aanchal is the latest star writer who replaced Yudi. Eventually, their bitterness turned into friendship, and ultimately love. Because maybe they weren’t so different after all. They then set out on a road trip to find Yudi’s inspiration for his new story. If people could relate to Yudi, then like me, Aanchal is also quite a relatable character. A headstrong, hard-working person who didn’t need a hand holder. Although challenging, she ran away from Yudi’s “I love you,” minutes before leaving for the airport. Ironically, Yudi got from Aanchal the same rejection he had given to every woman he dated in his life.

In this case, “Karma is being bitchy bro,” is the perfect quote that his best friend Montu says to sum up Yudi’s life situations. Yudi realized that his charm was not everything when learning how to survive in this world. Especially in love. However, the events lead Yudi to discover the truth. He holds Aanchal’s hands in his and says: “That people say opposites attract. That’s a lie. We always search for ourselves in someone else. And if we ever find them, we should treasure them and keep them close.”

Lesson

Although not your typical romantic comedy, Happy Ending teaches the audience a valuable lesson: that real life is not easy, and is certainly not like a fictional movie. A little editing with 1-2 minute songs after every third or fourth scene can make everything seem fine in a stereotypical Bollywood movie. Like Yudi, we can write multiple stories without an end to keep the hope alive about the characters and what happens to them. But in our life, we only have one story. We can choose what to do with it, but require action every step of the way.

In our life, we need to build that self-discipline to utilize the story we have to create the happy ending we deserve. Yudi closes the film off by telling Aanchal and the audience that lifelong commitments with any person, place, or thing can be quite scary. But it doesn’t have to be. We should simply be in the now and not think about tomorrow or look back at the past. So what are we waiting for? Let us be like Yudi and create the Happy Ending we deserve!