The Narrative Function of Song and Dance: Jab We Met

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2. “Nagada Nagada”

Geet and Aditya arrive at her home, where she discovers that her family has decided to go ahead with her marriage to Manjeet. A celebration takes place, with both families in attendance. Aditya, who hasn’t revealed his true identity to the family, has said he’s a musician. The mischevious Geet insists he provide the entertainment:

“Nagada Nagada” is an awful lot of fun, and it’s one of my favorite picturisations. Shahid Kapoor is a terrific dancer and he gets to show it off here, and I love the contrast of him in black against an amazingly colourful background — your eye is constantly drawn to him, which, of course, is the point.

Or, one of the points. Because the song serves to underline a couple of things. Aditya has revealed to Geet that his mother is Punjabi, so it doesn’t surprise us that when pushed by Geet, he’s able to come up with a song that so beautifully fits into the moment. And this is when we begin to see how comfortable Aditya becomes with Geet’s family, which will stand in stark contrast with Anshuman later in the film. Aditya appears to be an outsider, but this song serves to tell us that really, he belongs here in ways that will become more apparent as the film unfolds.

The song is also a tribute to Geet, a beautiful girl with eyes like daggers. However, what is most important here is that the song serves to underline what really is happening in Geet’s life. The girl of the song is betrothed to someone, but in love with someone else. One story will end, the song tells us, and another one will start.

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