So Humayun Saeed is back on our screens, this time as a self-declared Love Guru whose life’s mission seems to be protecting innocent women from falling for trash men. Noble, right? Except he’s doing it with the energy of that one overly confident friend who’s read too many self-help books and now thinks he’s certified to give relationship advice. He’s suave, smooth, and maybe just a little bit too smug which makes it even more entertaining when he meets Mahira Khan’s character, who is clearly not having it.
Humayun too, sports a refreshing yet subtle change with styling that shifts his look ever so slightly, yet pleases the eye – the hairdo, wardrobe, and overall look of the character; not overplayed yet appealing.
Now, enter Mahira Khan and no, she’s not here to be impressed. From what we see, she seems friendly with Humayun’s character, even amused by his whole ‘Love Guru’ philosophy, but she’s clearly not interested. Because hello, she’s already engaged. She’s got her own plans, her own man, and frankly doesn’t seem like someone looking to be “rescued.” But that doesn’t stop Humayun from taking her on as his personal project because of course, he thinks she’s about to make the biggest mistake of her life.
Mahira Khan is bringing her A- Game to the big screen with crisp outfits, tailored cuts and an onscreen chemistry with co-actor Humayun Saeed that never fails to turn heads.
What follows is a series of moments where he hovers somewhere between mentor, friend, and maybe something slightly more confused than either of them want to admit. Mahira plays it with this calm, graceful detachment she’s kind, she’s warm, she laughs at his jokes but she keeps that emotional boundary up, and it’s clear she’s not reading his intentions the same way he is. Which is probably why it’s going to get messy.
And in true rom-com fashion, just when she’s about to walk down the aisle and marry someone else, it looks like the self-proclaimed guru is going to find himself on the wrong side of his own playbook falling for the one woman he wasn’t supposed to.
The film’s set in London, and the trailer doesn’t let you forget it. We’re talking cobbled streets, cozy cafés, art galleries, and a very polished, picture-perfect version of city life that’s just aesthetic enough. The soundtrack leans into the romance, with background music that’s soft, moody, and clearly trying to make us feel something and honestly, it works. The songs aren’t particularly groundbreaking, but they serve the mood.
The frames are larger than life, even on Television, angular shots, a trailing sari palu zooms out to a magnificent castle, a royal blue air balloon set against a white sky, closing in on Humayun and Mahira’s profiles, the Love Guru trailer seems to reveal a flavour of what’s to come in the full movie.
Mahira and Humayun reuniting after so long is probably what’s going to pull most people in. There’s a comfortable chemistry there not over the top, but just enough to carry the tension and make the quieter scenes hit. You can tell they’ve done this before. And while the trailer doesn’t scream innovation, it does feel like the kind of film that’ll deliver exactly what it promises: a clean, simple rom-com with characters who slowly realise they’re a bit more tangled up in each other than they meant to be.
It’s giving: love wasn’t part of the plan, but here we are. No theatrics, no dramatic declarations (at least not yet), just a slow build of something familiar and quietly warm. Nothing revolutionary but sometimes, that’s exactly the point.
Love Guru is packed with an ensemble cast that is surely a bonus for cinema audiences; from Sohai Ali Abro, Ramsha Khan, Mohib Mirza, Mira Sethi, Javed Sheikh and Marina Khan, (and the list isn’t exhaustive) the director isn’t holding back with the casting. And with Nadeem Baig at the helm of affairs and Vasay Chaudhry penning the dialogues, one wonders (and hopes) if Love Guru can bring back the love to the Eid cinema extravaganza.
When it seemed that Eid movies in Pakistan had run the full gambit; from social messaging to big, fat, family weddings, one wonders if all that was needed was some good old-fashioned fun, and that too, delivered by the best of the best in the field. If Team Love Guru can’t do it, then who else can?
