So the story goes like this: Akash Bhatnagar (John Abraham; a.k.a Akki) is a doctor who loses his wife Maya (Tara Sharma) in an accident. Unable to cope with his loss, he begins to see and hear things that convince him that his dead wife is trying to contact him. His friends, like Tanya (Mahima Chaudhary) try to convince him that his mind is getting affected by the tragedy and advise him to move on with his life. Nevertheless the strange happenings continue and eventually lead Akash to what his wife was trying to tell him.
One of the strongest points of the film is its short running time. But the beginning of the movie starts out slow and it takes awhile for the viewer to get into the story. But once in, it keeps you hooked. The scenes just before and just after the intermission are excellent. There are some scary scenes, not horror but just unexpected happenings. Otherwise, Saaya is basically a drama and a good one at that. Although the story has been copied from Kevin Costner's Dragonfly, it still seems novel when compared to the run of the mill love stories (that we all still love to watch, no matter how overdone).
Direction is good. Screenplay could have used a teeny bit of help but some dialogues were thoughtful, especially the ones about faith. Music is excellent: dark, brooding, thoughtful and haunting. Performance wise, Tara Sharma thankfully has a very small role. Although pretty, she is wooden and impassive. Mahima Chaudhary in a supporting role is good. She has this wonderful way of morphing into different roles. Here she looks very much like the young widow she plays. Lastly, John Abraham is surprising. He does well in the complex role of a widower whose faith is questioned. Of course it doesn't hurt that he is major eye-candy. I can't wait for his next movie. There is still room for improvement though.
