Funny, Funny Start. Then They Stretch The Joke.
2 stars
Mini Review:
Kidnapping a bridegroom is not a new concept. In fact Jabariya Jodi failed terribly. But Akshaye Khanna makes this film about small town 'neta' type 'bahubali' in the business of groomnaping totally funny. But in the second half the joke gets stretched too far and you begin to wish they knew how to leave well enough alone.
Main Review:
Ravi Kissen's daughter Riva Kishen makes a confident debut in the film as Mandira who is unable to get a groom for some reason. I wish they had fleshed out her character a bit more and told us why, with things like f she's educated or what she likes. Simply flouncing about the house and flying kites does not endear us to the lass.
The hero, Pappu Mishra a TV anchor who has hair covering all of his forehead; and his sleepy large eyes makes him look like the sloth from Zootopia with bangs. Alas, Priyaank Sharma's debut is rather lost in trying so hard to be Shah Rukh when romancing the girl.
Thankfully there is Akshaye Khanna who is so funny in his Baba Bhandari avatar that we start grinning at the beginning of the film and carry on laughing and giggling until the interval. He has two sidekicks who are very very good. Between the three, they have so much desi swag you can't help but want him to be the hero instead of the silly lad with bangs. Akshaye earns the star for the film.
The other star is the writing. Sparkling and utterly desi, the writing is also very sharp. For example, Baba and his sidekicks enter a dark room where Pappu Mishra has been groomnapped, Baba stops suddenly. The two sidekicks are expecting something incredible from their boss, whenone of them asks, 'What now boss?'
Baba replies, 'Light!'
The other sidekick says devotedly, 'Baba is going to throw light on this situation.'
To which Baba replies, 'No, idiot, I was asking you to turn on the lights.'
It's delivered with so much deadpan, you begin laughing and have to stop because things get funnier.
The bride's family is a good ensemble led by a very restrained Rakesh Bedi, and the groom's family is a very OTT Satish Kaushik and Supriya Pathak. Kudos to them all.
The trouble happens when the writing gets stretched in trying to get everyone to be funny. And the part where Baba tries to turn "metro" goes on and on. They also don't do justice to Baba Bhandari's girlfriend Neelu (or Neelam) played rather well by Yuvika Chaudhary. She shows promise and they should have used her to bring Baba back from that infatuation with the heroine...
The finale is rather silly, but by that time, you have imagined every similar scene and wish for a Jimmy Sheirgill Tanu Weds Manu type scene... I was happy the movie had finally ended. A great idea that is frittered away... But fun while it lasts.
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