Refugee is a story of lovers, separated by politically created boundries of hatred.
It is set in the period immediately following the Indo-Pak war of 1971, which led to the creation of Bangladesh.

Naaz (Kareena Kapoor) is a young Bangladeshi refugee who reaches India with her family on way to Pakistan (which they believe to be their 'holy land'). Here she meets Refugee (Ahishek Bachchan), who is to take them across the border. Refugee is actually an orphan who earns his living by carrying people,guns and drugs across the harsh salt desert i.e. the Rann.

Romance then blossoms between the two love-starved youngsters. Life suddenly becomes beautiful and the love birds even start building a little nest for themselves.

But fate intends otherwise....

They then have to face opposition from all possible quarters like family,the army and a gang of cruel terrorists. After this the movie basically revolves around their quest for freedom and togetherness.

The story is not exactly new...but the handling of the movie definitely is. Abhishek and Kareena are so honest in their potrayals of the victimised lovers that one actually starts feeling sorry for them.

Abhishek Bachchan, especially, is a treat to watch. He is good in the angry-young-man scenes alright, but what is most amazing is his comic timing. He really is a chip off the old block!

The rest of the cast (especially Sunil Shetty, Jackie Shroff and Anupam Kher) has also given praise-worthy performances. The music of the film (by Anu Malik) is more on the classical side but it definitely grows on the listener. Its picturesque settings are already being praised since the time the trailers started appearing on television.

One thing this movie (and the earlier Kaho Na...Pyaar Hai) has proved is that the days of the Khan monopoly on Bollywood are now finally over!