Mannu Kya Karegga? is a delightful ride of love and mission powered by the friendly performances of its newcomers that bring a real twinkle to the screen. Read the full movie review.
Published: September 11, 2025 10:19 AM IST
Director – SsanJay Tripaathy
Writer – Saurabh Gupta, Radhika Malhotra
Cast – Vyom, Saachi Bindra, Kumud Mishra, Vinay Pathak, Charu Shankar, Rajesh Kumar, Brijendra Kala
Duration – 141.35 Minutes
Rating – 4
Directed by SsanJay Tripaathy, this isn’t your typical overblown drama. Rather, it’s a perfectly balanced slice-of-life tale filmed in picturesque Dehradun, a mountain clad town where a young but uncertain man, unsure of what you do want from life discovers purpose. This film is like that silent friend who sits next to you as you navigate the mess of your own mind – humorous, soothing, and curiously authentic.
Produced by Sharad Mehra, the film takes us through Manav Chaturvedi aka Mannu’s life, played by debutante Vyom, a full of energy youthful charmer, who’s great at everything except figuring out his own direction. He is maverick when it comes to sports, coding, theatrics, artistic endeavours or just hustling some odd job, but if someone asks him where he is headed in life, he probably wouldn’t have an answer.
For Mannu, life was one fun moment to another, until Jiya comes along, played by debutante Saachi Bindra – she is as smart, intelligent, confident as Mannu if not more, but she has an edge over him, she knows what she wants from life and where it is headed. She is improving her portfolio for Stanford or Harvard.
During a climate change tour, they find the spark and liking for one another, their chemistry is just organic and natural, but there personalities are stark opposite, and this is what actually propels the narrative.
Smitten by Jiya and riding each and every whim, Mannu finds himself slacking in academics, and his passion, football. Soon university issues a letter and chuck him out of football team. Jiya confronts Mannu, and he just cooks-up a story about being busy with his start-up, named Nothing. The ridiculousness of it — fictional team, fictional office, fictional success charts — is somehow agonizingly relatable, particularly for anyone who has ever felt the need to pretend to have it all together.
But Mannu’s façade is short-lived, as Jiya calls out his lie, University issues a stern warning, and Mannu hit a rock bottom, made out of hard realities of life. The love of his life doesn’t trust him, he has no aim in life, he has embarrassed himself and his folks (Kumud Mishra and Charu Shankar), and Jiya’s father (Rajesh Kumar), the pain of left alone hits him hard.
One moment Mannu was being introduced to Jiya family, even Jiya was introduced to Mannu’s family, now he is all alone. But life gives him a second chance, in terms of a wise but quirky old mentor, Don – Dean of Nothing (Vinay Pathak), with some wonderfully insightful observations on discovering your true calling, courtesy of the Japanese philosophy of Ikigai.
Similar to Wake-Up Sid, where Sid blundered his way into manhood, Vyom’s Mannu is a brush of the youth of today in limbo between confusion and possibility. His is a gritty, honest, and an extremely relatable path — not one more college romance, but a mirror for all of us who’ve ever stared in the mirror and asked: what am I to do? Aided by sincere music and realistic performances, Mannu Kya Karegga? isn’t a love story, it’s a gentle reminder that finding your calling — whether in the chaos of college or down the road — is the most intimate love story of all.
The performances throughout are beautifully inhabited. Vyom makes Mannu lovable even at his worst, lending him just the right amount of vulnerability and charm. Saachi Bindra’s Jiya is a breath of fresh air — poised, passionate, and quietly powerful. Kumud Mishra and Charu Shankar as Mannu’s supportive-yet-disappointed parents add emotional heft without ever turning preachy. Vinay Pathak as Don, the “Dean of Nothing,” is the perfect mentor — eccentric, philosophical, and unexpectedly wise. Every character feels real, like someone you’ve known or grown up with.
Technically, the movie glows with simplicity. The Saurabh Gupta-Radhika Malhotra script avoids for overt dramatic highs and melodramatic lows — it bobs along naturally and allows its people to evolve as they may. The cinematography captures the splendor of Dehradun’s landscape and college campus so beautifully that you want to pack your bags and go back to student-hood.
Crafted with passion by Curious Eyes Films, with its fresh energy, youth-friendly bewilderment, and music pure magic, Mannu Kya Karegga? is a delightful ride of love and mission powered by the friendly performances of its newcomers that bring a real twinkle to the screen. It’s a simple college romance that gets mixed up with finding oneself with a love story true from the heart, set in chartbuster music that remains.
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