A quirky take on life and relationships that looks at a fairy tale with a bit of a squint and an endearing look at what being in love really means.
Falling in love. It's very easy to do. Being in love--now that's the tough part. Nick (Saif Ali Khan) is a chef; Ambar (Preity Zinta) is a radio jockey. They're young, they're cool, they're independent, and together they make the PERFECT pair. Or do they? Surrounded by quirky friends, bosses, and landlords, but far away from home, Nick and Ambar take a huge leap of faith as they decide to move in together and tiptoe toward getting to know each other. They're attracted to each other but they fight. They live together, but as friends, in different rooms. They're in a relationship, but then again, they're not. They seem to want the same things, but seem to have very little in common. Amid all this chaos, they find out that Ambar is pregnant. Nick doesn't want the baby. How the two handle this dilemma is what will decide the direction of their relationship and be the real test of their love. Are they really made for each other? Are they actually compatible? Is this whole thing worth it? After all, if a relationship is what happens when you're busy not thinking about it--then what does it mean when everything has to be such a "decision"? SALAAM NAMASTE offers a quirky take on life, love, and relationships as it looks at a fairy tale with a bit of a squint. Full of colour, humour, and zest, it is an endearing look at what being in love really means.—Official Source
The story follows an Indian couple in Australia dealing with their problems and relationships, from their first meeting at a wedding ceremony to their decision to move in together without marriage, to their break-up upon discovering that Ambar is pregnant.
Two young progressive Indians, Nikhil "Nick" Arora (Saif Ali Khan) and Ambar Malhotra or "Amby" (Preity Zinta), have left India to live their lives in Melbourne, Australia.From childhood Nick was interested in cooking. Nick fled to Australia to become an architect. After becoming one, he got a commission to design a restaurant. The owner did not like the restaurant but loved the food that Nikhil cooked. Nick got a job as the head chef and the restaurant has been named "Nick of Time". His job allows him to have a laid-back lifestyle and get up late in the morning, both aspects that he values very much.
In Bangalore, Ambar was shown twelve men for marriage, and she rejected each one. Her parents suspected that she did not want to get married, however, she denied it. She went to Australia for a one-year foreign exchange program and decided to stay and become a surgeon. After hearing this, her parents cut off all ties with her. To pay for her education, she works as an R.J. at a local radio station, "Salaam Namaste" at 101.5 FM. The radio show is famous for hosting successful Indians in Melbourne.Deepan Nair/Debonair (Kunal Vijaykar) is the owner of the radio station.Jignesh/Jerry is Ambar's colleague at the hospital. Ambar is always bailing Jerry out as he never does his homework, and they are good friends.
When Nick is supposed to do an interview for Salaam Namaste, he oversleeps resulting in him getting insulted by Ambar on the air. Amber says that Nick is not interested in talking to his own customers even though he overcharges for his dishes and sells dishes worth $2 for $10. She says that Nikhil calls himself Nick as he is ashamed of being an Indian.His boss, Dheka (Ravi Khote), demands that he go to the radio station, or he will 'kill' him. Due to Ambar's interview, customers stopped coming to the restaurant and Dheka says that the only way to fix it is for Nick to go back on the show. Nick oversleeps again and he is, once again, insulted by Ambar for being late.
Nick gets work catering for one of Ambar's friend's wedding. Nick goes to the job with his best friend Ron. Ranjan "Ron" Mathur (Arshad Warsi) falls in love with Ambar's best friend Cathy (Tania Zaetta) at the wedding. Nick also feels a connection with Ambar, although they have no idea who the other really is. Nick introduces himself as an architect to Ambar. Nick hates marriages and hates kids even more.Ron and Cathy marry the next day and Nick and Ambar discover each other's true identities.
To make up to Ambar, Nick has the interview on Salaam Namaste (and this time he arrives 3 hours early for his interview slot), where he states, publicly, that he loves Ambar. Ambar is shocked and ends the interview in haste. Ambar is adamant that Nick doesn't know her and thus cannot be in love with her.
They both end up at Ron and Cathy's house, where the two just had a fight. Ambar says that this is the problem in making a commitment without knowing the other person.Nick persuades Ambar to move in together (to test their compatibility with each other), where they fall in love. Although they planned on maintaining distance between each other, they end up making love. Two months later, Ambar discovers she is pregnant, and they decide to end the pregnancy, but she cannot go through with it. The pair argue and break up.
Over the next five months, they have several comical disagreements. Nick finds a restaurant to buy, but the loan was not approved, and he cannot afford the down-payment because he spent all his money on the house to live with Ambar. This results in another argument where the baby kicks for the first time and Nick realizes he still loves Ambar.
Ambar asks Nick to take a blood test because Ambar is Thalassemia minor and if Nick is a Thalassemia minor too the baby would have a problem. Nick goes to the hospital where he has his blood test and the doctor gives him a Sonography, and at the hospital Nick finds out that Ambar is bearing twins. On the way home he thinks about what the doctor said to him, and he realizes that he has left Ambar alone through the whole pregnancy, when she needed him the most. He goes home and looks at the Sonography and still realizes that he had loved Ambar since the beginning.
He goes to buy an engagement ring and sees a eight-months pregnant Ambar trying on rings with her friend, Jignesh (Jugal Hansraj). Nick thinks that Ambar is marrying Jignesh and is devastated. He goes and gets drunk and takes an Australian girl home with him. When he wakes up, he is shocked, but the girl (Stella (Bonnie Hill)) is angry because he didn't do anything and was crying out Ambar's name all night.
Nick is greatly relieved, but then Ambar sees her in the bedroom and is very upset and tells Nick she's moving out that day. Then, Nick discovers that when Ambar was trying on rings, it was for Jignesh's girlfriend, Tina. He desperately searches for Ambar with the help of many devoted Salaam Namaste listeners. He finds her and apologizes but, when he is about propose, Ambar's water breaks, so they rush to the hospital.
At the hospital, Ron is there with Cathy, who's giving birth as well, and the nurse turns out to be Stella, the woman Nick had slept with. She tells Ambar that he didn't do anything that night and is in love with Ambar, who finally realizes Nick's true love for her. They then meet the incompetent obstetrician Dr. Vijay Kumar MDGGO (Abhishek Bachchan), who turns out to be a very comical and horrible doctor but manages to deliver the children. Ambar gives birth to twins and Nick proposes to her to which she happily agrees.
