So we have the perpetually irritable Piku (Deepika Padukone) whose hypochondriac father Bhaskor (Amitabh Bachchan) is obsessed with his bowel movements. A difficult man to live with, he is nonetheless the centre of Piku’s universe. Into this not-so-cozy family enters Rana (Irrfan), the taxi stand owner who volunteers to drive Piku and Bhaskor to Kolkata after all his drivers refuse to drive the constantly bickering father-daughter duo. He observes them and begins to understand Piku’s frustrations.

It’s all about loving your parents but not the Karan Johar way. Piku looks at parents as regular human beings who can be selfish as well as manipulative with their children’s affections. However, it stops short of being judgemental. What we get here are some exceptionally well fleshed out characters and their hilarious everyday interactions. Real people who shout when irritated, fight to let out their frustrations, and then forget it all immediately when a new conversation begins.

Writer Juhi Chaturvedi and director Shoojit Sircar first got together for the delightful Vicky Donor. That film was centered around sperms, this one is all about fecal emissions. And just like Vicky Donor never got sleazy despite its subject, Piku never slips into bawdy toilet humour. The writer-director duo pepper the everyday conversations between their characters with potty talk (of varied colours and sizes!) and you can’t help but smile and wrinkle your nose at the same time.

However, when a film is character driven it needs more than one subject to base its conversations on. The father-daughter bickering gets repetitive after a time. Irrfan’s character comes as a breath of fresh air but the centre point of interest still remains Bhaskor’s constipation. This makes the narrative somewhat flat in the second half. I would have liked to see at least one tender moment between father and daughter at some point in the film for the unconventional ending to make the right impact. Too many in-your-face brand placements also take away the magic of the moment quite a number of times.

What stays magical throughout though are the brilliant performances. Amitabh Bachchan plays the eccentric Bhaskor with visible relish. The famous Big B baritone disappears, his Bengali accent sparkles, the rudeness seems inborn, and his obsession with his real/imaginary ailments is hysterical. You can feel his disappointment when his BP comes out normal and his excitement when the thermometer shows his temperature up by a single point. Then there is Irrfan who does things with his eyes and smile that very few actors can. And oh so effortlessly! Deepika surprises with a natural and highly nuanced performance. Her eyes speak volumes and never once does she seem like a lightweight in front of her great co-actors. The best thing is that none of these three actors manage to outshine the others – they come together in complete harmony on the screen. The rest of the casting is also spot on be it the hapless servant, the maid who gets fired, Bhaskor’s brother and his wife, or even the drivers of Irrfan’s taxi stand. Mousami Chatterjee as Piku’s aunt was a delight.

Piku falls short of being a masterpiece due to too much focus on motion and not enough on emotion. Nevertheless it is a cute little film that deserves a watch. Go for it!

Prem (Ayushmann Khurrana) is a 10th fail loser staring at an uncertain future. His family forces him to marry Sandhya (Bhumi Phednekar), a well-educated girl with good job prospects so that the family’s financial problems are taken care of. The problem is that Sandhya is fat and Prem can’t get himself to like her.

If you have seen the trailers, you pretty much know all about the story and how it ends. But it is the charming way director Sharad Katariya tells his tale that makes the experience anything but predictable. The film is full of delightful little moments well woven together in an excellent screenplay. The characters are all endearing, especially Prem’s family, and you can’t help but like them. Their hilarious fights and daily frustrations make for some sparkling scenes, and you laugh at them even when feeling sorry for them.

This is a film where all aspects of filmmaking come together perfectly. Haridwar is shot with a lot of affection. The production design captures the 90s details perfectly – the audio and video cassettes, the scooter, the landline phone! The dialogues are a riot, steeped in small town charm. And the Kumar Sanu-esque music, especially the lovely ‘Moh Moh Ke Dhaage’, add to the cute chemistry between the leads. What’s most admirable is the way this film makes so many points so subtly, be it about feminism, self esteem, husband-wife relationships, and even education.

The performances are all excellent. The inimitable Sanjay Mishra owns every scene he is in. Seema Pahwa, Sheeba Chadda and Alika Amin share great camaraderie. The supporting actors in bit roles are just as good and add to the authenticity of the small town setting. Ayushmann is in fine form after a long time and his loser next door act is first rate. However, towering over all of them is newcomer Bhumi Phednekar with an effortless performance. She doesn’t play Sandhya, she becomes Sandhya. This has to be the most outstanding debut by an actress in a long time.

The only disappointing thing in Dum Laga Ke Haisha is its rushed ending. After Prem and Sandhya resolved their differences, we needed to see the blossoming of their relationship. The falling in love moment comes too abruptly and leaves one asking for more. However, it is easy to overlook such flaws when the film entertains so thoroughly. And this little gem doesn’t just entertain, it warms the cockles of your heart.

Don’t miss it!

What do you do when you have a film to make but no script? You book an expensive location and fly out your whole crew of course! That’s what celebrated writer, director and womaniser Kabir (Arjun Rampal) does to overcome his writer’s block. He bumps into another filmmaker Ayesha (Jacqueline Fernandez) there and she becomes his muse and the inspiration of his film script. And so starts the movie within the movie about Roy (Ranbir Kapoor) and Tia (Jaqueline again). And you wait for something to happen. The characters keep talking, trying to outdo the other in sounding pretentiously philosophical. You wait, for the story to move, for something interesting to happen, for that one good moment to redeem the banality of this tedious experience. What you get is scene after scene of the characters staring into space. Till the end.

Really now, why did Ranbir agree to do this film? Playing second fiddle to Arjun Rampal is not what the audience expects from the rising star. Arjun proves yet again what a handsome piece of wood he is. Jacqueline looks lovely and while her acting talent is nothing to write home about, she does light up the screen with her luminous screen presence. She also dances like a dream though the songs start too abruptly and fail to make the mark they deserved to. The only redeeming feature of Roy is its beautiful locales. Malasian Tourism may well be the only gainer out of this train wreck of a movie.

At one point in the film, Arjun’s character wonders, ‘yeh film kaise ban gayi?’. Our sentiments exactly!

A spunky journalist Jaggu (Anushka Sharma) bumps into PK (Aamir Khan) while looking for an interesting story to cover. His weird actions pique her curiosity, so do his perplexing ideas about God and religion. Eventually she finds out the astounding reasons behind his actions and vows to help him achieve his goal.

Picking a subject like this is a brave step indeed. However, OMG Oh My God is still fresh in our minds and PK loses out not just on the novelty factor here but also makes a lesser impact than the former. Main reason is that the second half of the film goes all over the place. No such complaints from the first half where the laughter keeps flowing and yet the irony in many situations registers strongly. Unfortunately, the pace drops post interval with Hirani trying to juggle too many issues and being unable to hold it all together. The romantic track between PK and Jaggu seems forced in, so do most of the songs. The weak climax adds to the feeling of dissatisfaction as one walks out of the theatre.

What stays consistently good is the performance of Aamir as the lovable weirdo. After a long time he seems to be having fun playing a character. He is also helped tremendously by some rollicking Bhojpuri dialogues. Anushka stands her own in front of Aamir with a very natural performance. Sanjay Dutt and Sushant Singh Rajput make their presence felt in small roles. The supporting cast consists mainly of Hirani regulars and they are as competent as always.

PK is not a bad film at all. In fact it is a good film. However ‘good’ is not what one expects from Rajkumar Hirani. When one walks into a cinema hall expecting brilliance and gets only good, there is bound to be disappointment. However, there is no denying that Hirani’s weakest film is still better than 95 percent of the films released this year. Don’t miss it but do keep your expectations low.

Kill Dil gives us the age old plot of two orphans who grow up in the world of crime and then want out when one of them falls in love. We know how that works out, don’t we? That bit about crime being a one-way street but love triumphing over all? Director Shaad Ali probably thought that giving this old-as-the-hills plot a pulpy look would make it look all new and different. Only he ends up creating characters so unrealistic that the viewer finds it impossible to connect with them.

There have been many films in the past where good treatment was able to save a non-existent story. Kill Dil is not one of them. With a pathetic screenplay, under-written characters and bad music, Shaad Ali manages the unenviable feat of making even a powerhouse performer like Govinda look dull. Now that, Mr. Ali, is unforgivable.

The other actors fare no better. Ranveer and Parineeti try hard but are let down by the bad writing. Ali Zafar is terribly miscast. While the lead pair displays zero chemistry, Ranveer and Ali manage a couple of interesting boy-bonding scenes between them in the first half. However, the film completely nosedives in the second half when Ranveer decides to reform himself. Then it is just a long wait to the end, very long for a film with a runtime of only two hours.

This one is a complete waste of time. Avoid.

Charlie (Shahrukh Khan) puts together a team of ‘losers’ to carry out a diamond heist. A dynamite expert, a safe cracker, a computer hacker and a tapori gear up to win the world’s biggest dance championship to attain this goal. Training this bunch of men with two left feet is bar dancer Mohini (Deepika Padukone). How this team of bad dancers goes on to win the championship as well as steal the diamonds in true blue Hindi film ishtyle is what Farah Khan’s latest offering is all about.

There are films that make you think, and then there are films that demand that you stop thinking and let your senses react to what is happening on the screen. The latter is what we call masala cinema and Happy New Year is a fine specimen of this phenomena. When entertaining characters are put in interesting situations, one finds it easy to ignore the lack of logic and Farah Khan seems to understand this well. She revels in creating outrageous scenarios that may throw reason to the winds but ensure 3 hours of pure entertainment.

And yet, it is not mindless. In fact some of the writing is exceptionally clever. There is nothing politically correct here – fun is made of Parsis, illiterates, homosexuals, Saroj Khan and even Narendra Modi – but it all remains cheeky and never crosses the line into offensiveness. Even the camera lingering on Deepika’s curves doesn’t seem crass. To give Khan her due, it lingers on the male bodies with even more fondness. As it does on Dubai! Showcasing the city in all its glory, the film is a visual spectacle. The good music and smart choreography also add to the wholesome experience.

The easy camaraderie between the actors is another reason the film doesn’t falter even when the pace drops at times. Shahrukh broods but never gets too serious, Abhishek Bachchan displays great comic timing, Sonu Sood shows off his chiselled body, Boman Irani blends in perfectly despite the age difference and Vivaan Shah too makes himself a natural part of the team. And then there is the drop dead gorgeous Deepika who lights up the screen so effortlessly. She dances like a dream and the fact that she has grown tremendously as an actor in the last couple of years is apparent in the way she steals the show in quite a few scenes. Jackie Shroff too makes a sauve villain. If only the writing in the first half had been tighter, this would have turned out a near perfect entertainer.

All said and done, Tees Maar Khan can now be forgiven as one-off mistake. Farah Khan is back with a bang! If her earlier films haven’t appealed to you, stay away. If they have, go have a rollicking time this festive season.

Devi/Devil (Salman) is a man who seeks adventure and ‘kick’ all the time. Lest you be in no doubt about this fact, the word ‘kick’ is repeated throughout the film. And since the man has to have his ‘kick’, he obviously goes around making a nuisance of himself. This is something the heroine Shaina (Jacqueline Fernandes) and the audience is supposed to find oh-so-adorable. After all, who plays a loveable hell-raiser better than our own Salman bhai? So what’s wrong, you ask? One, the pathetic screenplay and two, Salman’s surprising lack of charisma. Surprising because he has managed to rise above many a mediocre screenplays in the past on the strength of his personal charm. Also because this is something both Randeep Hooda and Nawazuddin manage to do with aplomb.

In fact it is Randeep who emerges as the real hero of the film with his no-nonsense cop act. His solid presence and dignified performance make Salman’s dare devilry look childish. And then Nawazuddin turns up post-interval to ensure that no one looks elsewhere when he is on screen. The supremely talented Sanjay Mishra and Saurabh Shukla also do their bit to brighten up the proceedings. However, the film falls whenever it focusses on the leads, which unfortunately is for the majority of the runtime.

Nobody expects path-breaking cinema from a Salman Khan film. In fact, one walks in expecting the absurd. However, there is entertaining-absurd and there is tedious-absurd. Kick is unfortunately the latter. The film has good production values and some slick action but that can’t really make up for bad writing. The songs too are a big let-down, making one wish for a fast forward button. Only ‘jumme ki raat’ stands out and Jacqueline salvages her dull presence in the film somewhat with some cool dance moves. The same can’t be said for Salman who merely looks disinterested while doing those pelvic thrusts.

So another Eid, another Robin Hood story. This one may be another blockbuster too. After all, who needs substance when style sells so well. However, a little more respect for your audience won’t hurt, would it Bhai?

Kavya (Alia Bhatt) meets Humpty (Varun Dhawan) when she goes to Delhi from Ambala for her wedding shopping. She is a self-professed ‘patakha’ and he a sweet rogue. The expected follows, but she has to return home and get married to the NRI that her father has chosen for her. In true Raj-style Humpty follows her to win over his Simran’s family.


Despite a predictable plot, debutant director Shashank Khaitan creates a fun ride which ensures that the smile never leaves your face. The first half especially is a breeze with a lot of cute moments and some hilarious one-liners. Alia and Varun share a warm camaraderie and their falling in love seems quite natural (unlike a lot of recent rom-coms). Post-interval the film goes into the DDLJ territory. Fortunately, the narrative stays perky though Khaitan doesn’t seem as comfortable with romance as he does with comedy. He also bungles up with the music. Except for old hits ‘Saturday Saturday’ and ‘Samjhaawan’, the rest of the songs are mediocre and their picturisation too is lacklustre.


A love story relies a lot on its lead pair and both Alia and Varun come out with flying colours. Alia is just getting better with each film. Her luminous presence overshadowed Arjun Kapoor in 2 States and here too it is difficult to look at anybody else when she is on screen. Varun too is spontaneous and endearing as the goofy Humpty. After Main Tera Hero, this is another confident performance from him. Ashutosh Rana plays Alia’s stern father with panache. Makes you wonder why we don’t see more of his talented actor on the big screen. Siddharth Shukla makes decent eye candy. A special mention must be made of Gaurav Pandey and Sahil Vaid who are excellent as Varun’s loyal friends

Good writing and good performances can bring alive even the most jaded of plots. Watch Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania without expecting any novelty in terms of storyline. You may just go ‘awww’ at a few places!

A cold blooded murderer Guru (Sidharth Malhotra) falls in love with Aisha (Shraddha Kapoor) and decides to change his ways. Their lovingly created paradise is shattered when Aisha is brutally murdered for no apparent reason (this is not a spoiler). The murderer could be a timid middle-class man Rakesh (Riteish Deshmukh) who may also just be your friendly neighbourhood psychopath.

Aisha is murdered a few minutes into the film. The curiosity is aroused. And then the film goes into a cutesy flashback of how the lovers met and fell in love. Because Shraddha and her dialogue delivery are so irritating, and because Sidharth tries a bit too hard to be a brooding goon, it is a welcome change when the story comes back to present and we meet Rakesh and his wife Sulo (Aamna Sharif). The film peaks when Rakesh’s truth is unveiled and then…… nothing! We go into another flashback. And another. In between, some bones are broken, some glasses are shattered, lots of blood is shed, and finally the film limps towards a bloody finale.

The good thing is that the back and forth narrative isn’t confusing. The bad thing is that it is totally unnecessary. This is a film that could have effectively ended at intermission but it keeps stretching itself just for the heck of it. Aisha’s character, which is supposed to be the emotional anchor of the film, is badly written and weakly performed and hence, Suri’s repeated attempts to tug at the audience’ heartstrings end up looking plastic. When the love story doesn’t work, the songs don’t work either. A pity since they are quite hummable.

What gives the film its gravitas is Riteish’s brilliant turn as a henpecked husband who could just be a murderous madman too. His eyes remain dead and yet they speak volumes. Sidharth is more comfortable showing vulnerability than he is showing menace. However, this is a very good performance for a relative newcomer. Aamna Sharif looks beautiful and gives a nuanced performance despite having a one-note role. Kamaal R Khan plays a slimy womaniser with visible relish.

There is only so much good actors can do when the screenplay is all over the place. Riteish Deshmukh’s performance deserved a better film. Hope he gets it soon. It would be appalling to see him go back to films like Grand Masti and Humshakals after this.

Sunny works as an Assistant Director in films while waiting for his big acting break. During a shooting schedule in Rajasthan he is kidnapped by extremists from across the border and taken to a small village in Pakistan. The hostile environment fails to diminish his happy-go-lucky spirit and the ham artist in him soon wins over the Bollywood-loving villagers. He also strikes an unlikely friendship with Aftab (Inaamulhaq), a film pirate as much in love with Bollywood as Sunny.

It was a perfect situation for a joyous celebration of India and Pakistan’s mutual love for Hindi cinema. If only director Nitin Kakkar had remained focused on the soft power of Bollywood and how it can bridge the gaps between the two warring countries. Instead he uses it as a base to tell a completely different story of how extremism breeds terrorism. What we get finally is a handful of sparkling scenes but by and large the storytelling remains dull.

Though Kakkar creates characters we come to care for, he never lets them live up to their potential. Sharib and Inaamulhaq try their best (Inaamulhaq is better) and even the supporting cast of Kumud Mishra and others is competent. However, the undercurrents of the narrative are too grim and Bollywood never quite manages to become the strong force it was meant to be. The ambiguous climax also leaves one with mixed feelings.

If only noble intentions could translate into good movies. Watch Filmistaan to appreciate a film that stands up for Bollywood like very few films have. It doesn’t have much else to recommend it for.