At a time when mainstream romance usually oscillates between airbrushed fantasy and comedy, with a dash of toxic masculinity, Vivek Soni’s ‘Chand Mera Dil’ arrives as a grounded, mature counter-narrative. It subverts the grammar of a Bollywood musical melodrama to deliver a sharp dissection of modern intimacy with a melancholic flourish .
The film follows Aarav (Lakshya) and Chandni (Ananya Panday), two Hyderabad engineering students who fall deeply in love. Their carefree romance takes a serious turn after an unplanned pregnancy and early marriage push them into adulthood sooner than expected . What follows is not a fairytale but a raw, uncomfortable, and agonisingly real portrait of a relationship crumbling under the weight of responsibility.
A romance that respects its characters
After a long time, a love story doesn’t dump career and bread-and-butter issues. Aarav and Chandni are not flaky cardboards. Besides the raging hormones, they come across as believable students facing rigorous academic pressures. They do not drop out when life gets messy .
The writing respects their intellect and ambition, showing that pursuing career goals isn’t an alternative to a love story, or vice versa. It is a heavy framework within which the love story must exist. This is what makes ‘Chand Mera Dil’ different – it doesn’t pretend that young love exists in a vacuum .
Performances that elevate the material
Lakshya does the heavy lifting in the difficult role of a boy forced to mature early. Chequered by the frustration and insecurity of being unable to build a career because of romantic commitments, the actor captures the agony of a young Indian man unprepared for responsibility. He evolves into a broken soul, trapped under the weight of his own guilt and resentment .
For Ananya Panday, the film marks a decisive break from the glossy, hyper-stylised mould. She breathes life into Chandni – the heavy pauses mid-sentence, the fixed, glassy stare capturing a spirit checking out of a relationship. She comes across as an unyielding wall against the frenetic energy of Lakshya . Together, they establish an effortless physical and emotional intimacy early on, making the eventual fracture sting all the more.
A grounded, authentic world
Shot on location in Hyderabad, the film gives a fresh vibe with textured, authentic campus settings. The visual grammar leans heavily into warm but melancholic colour tones, focusing on shadows, close-ups of shared glances, and physical distance in the frame to emphasise both emotional yearning and alienation .
The music and lyrics (Sachin-Jigar and Amitabh Bhattacharya) mirror the protagonists’ psychological state and form the emotional spine of the regret-filled romance . The album has been widely praised, with tracks like “Ishaq Nibhaavan” and the title track standing out .
Why this film matters
Unlike Bollywood tropes where the heroine compromises her identity to preserve love, the film positions self-respect as an uncompromising boundary for the modern woman . When Chandni’s decision to move out turns out to be her willingness to kill the illusion of a “legendary” love story, it strikes.
At the same time, your heart is forced to beat for Aarav because he isn’t a situationship partner who kept one foot out of the door. He was all-in. Vivek Soni handles Aarav with empathy, ensuring the audience feels the tragic weight of his loss as sharply as Chandni’s choice .
Verdict
There are moments when the script feels a little too clearly structured into segments with clear tonal shifts. There are small passages where characters start explaining the subtext to the audience . But eventually, ‘Chand Mera Dil’ proves that romance doesn’t lose its magic when it encounters real life. A love story works when you start caring for both protagonists and want to see them together. This film evokes that rare feeling as it mines the relatable grey areas of modern relationships .
