Reel Couples of 2016: The Best and The Worst

The reviews for Kapoor & Sons vary from an average viewing to something worth watching. But something almost all reviews have in common is the praises for Alia Bhatt's Tia and Sidharth Malhotra's Arjun. The two added a fun element to the movie, not just with their pleasing chemistry, but also the individual character arcs they portray. Blurring the line between real and reel, their chemistry was perhaps even more sizzling this time around than in their debut, Student of the Year (2012).Despite the lacklustre reception received by Sanam Teri Kasam, it is safe to say that Mawra Hocane's Saru and Harshvardhan Rane's Inder were made for each other! Their camaraderie and ease with each other made the dramatic storyline seem almost palatable. Inder's roughness and Saru's soft innocence made for the perfect balance in this saga. Furthermore, Rane and Hocane seemed to truly add that extra relatability to their characters that really tugged at our heartstrings.The premise of Ki & Ka was quite fresh and one that most probably found interesting. While the storyline was a little predictable, the movie worked for the most part. It was definitely a fun watch, and not least because of the adorableness that was Kareena Kapoor's Kia and Arjun Kapoor's Kabir. Not only were they unconventionally functioning as a married couple, but they were also an older woman/younger man pair that had a cute relationship. While the chemistry was not off the charts, it was very realistically portrayed.The summer fling type relationship between Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's Saba and Ranbir Kapoor's Ayan falls flat in Ae Dil Hai Muskil. The film may have turned into a (surprise?) hit, but something about their romance seems to lack the sizzling chemistry of other on-screen pairs we have seen this year. While it might have to do with the characters themselves, we think that the two were just this side of believable.Despite the decent showing at the box office, the predictability of Sultan means that it is entertaining, but nothing new. Yet that compelling storytelling did not translate into the romance between Salman Khan's Sultan and Anushka Sharma's Aarfa. It was undeniable patriarchal and condescending towards women, and so they went straight onto this half of my list.Reviews for Rustom have been mixed, but one thing is certain, Akshay Kumar's Rustom and Ileana D'Cruz's Cynthia may have looked pretty, but they did not mesh well on screen. The concept was much better than the execution. The actors tried the best with what they had, but even they could not bring life to a pairing that was doomed to fail.