Tips Films and Target Films P. Ltd.'s DIL KA RISHTA, edited-directed by Naresh Malhotra, is inspired by the English flick MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION, which was made twice in Hollywood – in 1935 and subsequently in 1954.

Gulzar's KINARA [Hema Malini-Jeetendra] and Anubhav Sinha's TUM BIN [Priyanshu-Sandali Sinha] also tackled a similar theme.

Jai [Arjun Rampal] has everything – dashing looks, a winsome personality, a heart of gold. He's a father's pride. And any woman's dream. The woman of his dreams is the breath-takingly beautiful Tia [Aishwarya Rai]. But Tia does not reciprocate.

Jai does not give up. Suddenly, events take a fateful turn. Something devastating happens. Jai now sees the love, affection and adoration in Tia's eyes. But now Jai does not reciprocate, although he loves her silently and intensely.

DIL KA RISHTA can be best described as a simple story, with some likeable moments, which eventually bows down to the dictates of commercial cinema and loses the impact in the process.

To start with, the film has everything going for it – a fresh cast, top-notch technicians, pleasing visuals, but it suffers in that one department that is the lifeline of any film – the script.

The first half is actually the best part of the enterprise –
 

The love triangle is established in the initial reels itself. The sequences between Aishwarya Rai and Priyanshu are well penned, evoking the right emotions. The birthday sequence, for instance, is an example of good writing and deft execution.

The accident at the interval point raises the expectations of a better second half, but alas! The graph of the film slides down in the post-interval portions. Reason? Predictability!

The second half does not impress mainly because –

a) The pace of the film drops considerably. The story moves at a snail's pace here.
b) The writers (Vrinda Rai and Shabbir Boxwala) have relied too heavily on the tried and tested stuff to move the story ahead.
c) The drama is actually missing in this half. The story stagnates. Even the songs in this half crop up without valid situations.

Even the climax is weak. For the heroine to forgive her husband's murderer so easily and agree to marry the same murderer instantly looks ridiculous. The writers should've thought of a better way to culminate the story.

The script leaves a lot to be desired. While the first half has its share of enjoyable and entertaining moments, surprisingly, the second half is devoid of it.

Naresh Malhotra's direction is bogged own by a half-baked script. Yet, it must be said to the director's credit that he has handled a couple of sequences with aplomb. He shows a flair for light scenes, which is evident in the first half.
 

However, as an editor, Malhotra's work is faulty. The film drags in the second half and needs to be trimmed by at least 15 minutes for a better impact.

Nadeem-Shravan's music is easy on the ears, but it lacks a hit score – so vital for a love story. Barring the title track and 'Saajan Saajan', two decent tracks, the remaining numbers are plain average. Ashok Mehta's cinematography is, like always, flawless. Viju Shah's background music is appropriate. Naeem Shah's dialogues are just about okay.
 

Arjun Rampal does a sincere job. He is maturing into a fine actor. Aishwarya Rai looks bewitching (like always!) and scores as an actress. Priyanshu is excellent. He contributes enormously in making the first half lively. Rakhee is first-rate. Paresh Rawal doesn't have a role of substance, yet does his bit well.

On the whole, DIL KA RISHTA stands on a weak foundation – a predictable script – which will tell on its business in days to come.