Archives for 2017

Banner: Fox Star Studios
Producer: Fox Star Studios
Director: Raj Nidimoru, Krishna DK
Star Cast: Sidharth Malhotra, Jacqueline Fernandez, Darshan Kumar, Suniel Shetty, Rajit Kapur, Supriya Pilgaonkar, Amit Mistry & Hussain Dalal
Music: Sachin – Jigar

A popular formula used in our films since years is that of 2 distinct characters having identical faces that gives rise to confusion to the other characters in the films but loads of entertainment to the viewers. Don, Hum Dono, Aakhree Raasta, Judwaa, Seeta Aur Geeta, Rowdy Rathore and many other films tackled this idea successfully. Now A Gentleman also gets added to the list. So does it manage to provide the entertainment like the aforementioned films or does it fail in entertaining the viewers, let’s analyze.

A Gentleman is about a simple, innocent guy in Miami whose life turns upside down due to a supposed case of a mistaken identity. Gaurav (Sidharth Malhotra) is doing well in his career & is quite stable financially. He is attracted to Kavya (Jacqueline Fernandez) but she finds him too boring. On the other hand, Rishi (Sidharth Malhotra) is a sexy, risk – taker gangster on the run. He has got into the bad books of the evil Colonel Vijay Saxena (Suniel Shetty) who’s trying to hunt him down. What happens next and are Rishi & Gaurav the same person or are they different is something that forms the rest of the film.

A Gentleman doesn’t waste time in introducing the characters & their respective traits. There are 2 parallel tracks in the 1st half and it manages to keep the interest going. There is a huge surprise minutes before the intermission point that is bound to catch most of the viewers unawares. You expect the film to go on a high in the 2nd half but that never happens. Logic takes a backseat and the film turns into a no -brainer. It also reminds one of the 90’s Hollywood action films. In this process, the film looks too Western and the makers should have probably Indianized it well.

Raj Nidimoru, Krishna DK & Sita Menon’s story shows promise initially but later turns haphazard. Raj Nidimoru & Krishna DK’s screenplay handles the complex narrative well in the 1st half but overall, it could have been better & more sensible. Things are too unconvincing in the film. In the Thailand heist sequence, the security officers run behind Team Rishi while the locker remains exposed in the open. Rishi exercises heavily & follows up his work out eating Ching’s noodles. Sadly, the product placement is in your face. Kavya is shocked to learn about Gaurav and gets disgusted at him but suddenly in the next scene, she gets intimate with him. Even the manner in which Colonel’s henchman Yakub (Darshan Kumaar) spares Rishi from death several times is strange. Such bewildering aspects take away the sheen. Sumit Batheja’s dialogues however are hilarious.

Raj Nidimoru & Krishna DK’s direction is weak. The screenplay itself is faulty and hence the execution anyways wouldn’t have helped much. They have given some great entertainers in the past like 99, Shor In The City & Go Goa Gone. They possess the technical knowledge and if they choose the right script, they can do wonders. Unfortunately, this is the 2nd consecutive time, after Happy Ending, that they have faltered with a weak script.

Sachin – Jigar’s music fails to make a mark. “Chandralekha” is the best of the lot. “Bandook Meri Laila” is foot – tapping but is relegated to the background. “Baat Ban Jaye” & “Laagi Na Choote” are forgettable, while “Disco Disco” is played during the end credits.

Roman Jakobi’s cinematography is great & locales of Miami, Thailand and even Mumbai are well captured. Aparna Sud’s production design is appealing. Manoshi Nath, Rushi Sharma & Niharika Jolly’s costumes are glamorous, especially the ones worn by Jacqueline Fernandez. Aarif Sheikh’s editing could have been better & sharper in the 2nd half. The action scenes are too lengthy. Cyril Raffaelli, Parvez Shaikh, George Aguilar’s action is slick & entertaining.

Performance wise Sidharth Malhotra however is apt for the role. He is convincing as the “sundar”, “susheel” Gaurav as well as the risky Rishi. Both avatars are well essayed and he is good even in action scenes. Jacqueline Fernandez looks sizzling and has an interesting character. But she doesn’t get to do much and it’s only from the middle of the 2nd half that she gets embroiled in the madness. Suniel Shetty is wasted. He deserved more screen time and could have made for a great villain. Darshan Kumaar however has a crucial part and gives an impressive performance. Rajit Kapur & Supriya Pilgaonkar (Kavya’s parents) are decent. Amit Mistry (Jignesh) & Hussain Dalal (Dikshit) raise loads of laughs.

Tail Piece: On the whole, A Gentleman surprises the audiences with the developments in the 1st half but the film goes downhill in the 2nd half completely. At the Box – Office turnstiles, it will collect the most out of all other releases but it won’t last long in either the Multiples Screens of the cities or even the Single theatres of the interiors.

Producers: Junglee Pictures & BR Studios
Director Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Star Cast: RajKummar Rao, Ayushmann Khurrana, Kriti Sanon, Pankaj Tripathi, Seema Bhargava, Swati Semwal & Rohit Chaudhary
Music: Sameer Uddin

Ms. Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari in her previous outing Nil Battey Sannata had created quite an impact with her decent enough tackling of a timely womencentric subject. But in her latest outing Bareilly Ki Barfi, an unusual title, she makes a good start by warmly introducing her 3 main characters namely Chirag – Bitty – Preetam caught in their own triangular web of their intertwined love stories but alas their love saga starts off with a whiff of fresh air and ends up on an awfully dragging not. But of course the silver lining in the cloud is its perfect setting of the North Indian milieu.

Since more than a decade, our filmmakers have started churning out films set in small towns, particularly North India. Such rooted stories work big time, especially if they provide ample entertainment. The success of Tanu Weds Manu Returns, Sultan, Dangal et al in recent times which have made it evident how such “desi” flicks have a large audience acceptance.

And Bareilly Ki Barfi, this week’s release, too is based in Bareilly, as the title suggests, and looked entertaining from the promos. So does it manage to tickle viewers’ funny bone or turns to be yet another flop in the season of debacles, let’s analyze.

The scripted scenario of Bareilly Ki Barfi is about a printing press owner who devises a unique plan to woo the girl he loves but the idea backfires. Chirag Dubey (Ayushmann Khurrana) runs a printing press in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh.

After being heartbroken, Chirag writes a book called “Bareilly Ki Barfi” on the girl he was in love with. Fearing that she’ll be slammed if he writes the book in his own name, he puts the name of Pritam Vidrohi (Rajkummar Rao), his shy, soft – spoken friend, as the book’s author. The book fails big time but 5 years later, Bitti Mishra (Kriti Sanon), the coolest girl in town, buys it one day from the railway station, when she was about to run away after her mother Sheela’s (Seema Pahwa) constant rants over her marriage. In the train, Bitti reads “Bareilly Ki Barfi” and is stunned to see that the girl described in the novel is very much like her – free spirited, break dance lover, smoker, film buff & quie progressive too.

She immediately returns back to Bareilly and meets Chirag, since he had printed the book, and asks him for Pritam’s contact details, since she is impressed by the book. Chirag slowly falls for Bitti but is not able to tell her that it’s him and not Pritam who wrote the book titled “Bareilly Ki Barfi”.

Chirag then devises a plan, he tells Pritam after tracking him down who has by now fled from Barilly fearing worst consequences, to have a makeover, meet Bitti, break her heart & run off again. At this point, Chirag would take over and hopefully woo Bitti successfully.

But sadly enough for Chirag, Bitti slowly starts falling for Pritam. How Chirag then attempts to ensure that doesn’t happen forms the rest of the story.

Bareilly Ki Barfi begins well and the introduction of characters is done in a neat manner. But the film really picks up steam when Pritam enters the narrative. His transformation & the whole process is hilarious and in several ways, is the best portion of the film.

Chirag & Bitti’s sequences in the 1st half aren’t great but make for a nice watch. One sequence which particularly stands out is Bitti celebrating Chirag’s birthday. Post interval, things look fine initially. The comic & dramatic moments continue and entertain but after a point, the film drags.

Barielly Ki Barfi never was illogical but yet, a few aspects of the film seem too difficult to digest. 1stly, why did Chirag not use a pseudonym to write his novel? His character is also shown to be quite a “dabangg” who has no qualms in ragging & terrorizing Pritam.

Yet, Chirag never gathers the courage to tell Bitti how much he loves her. There’s a twist in the tale in the finale which does catch viewers unawares and it brings a relief since the climax was getting clichéd. But the explanation given behind the twist again turns out to be too unconvincing.

Bareilly Ki Barfi is adapted from the book “The Ingredients Of Love” by Nicolas Barreau. Nitesh Tiwari & Shreyas Jain’s story is weak and needed quite a bit of polishing. Their screenplay is effective at places but otherwise, it drags. While their dialogues are terrific and probably the best thing of the film.

Yet credit goes to Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari’s direction which is uncomplicated & simple and that’s her biggest victory. But the director, who helmed the well – made Nil Battey Sannata last year, could have done a better job and kept the film tighter.

The music of the film is not memorable.
“Sweety Tera Drama” is the only track that registers. “Badass Babuaa” is relegated to the background during the entertaining montage of Pritam’s transformation. “Nazm Nazm” fails to make a mark while “Bairaagi” is wasted. “Twist Kamariya” is forced but since it’s added during opening credits, one won’t mind. Sameer Uddin’s background score is highly entertaining & uplifting.
Gavemic U Ary’s cinematography is nothing special but the very 1st scene is very well captured. Chandrashekhar Prajapati’s editing is pacy but goes off track in the 2nd half.

Performance wise Ayushmann Khurrana as always appears confident and dominates some of the sequences quite well. He looks convincing as the lover boy as well as the bully in his scenes with Rajkummar and this is quite praiseworthy. However, his friendzoned avatar does remind one of his act in his previous film Meri Pyaari Bindu. It’s amusing to see that he played a role in a similar zone in 2 back – to – back films. Kriti Sanon delivers a decent performance and has even worked on her accent, mannerisms et al to appear as a decent small – town girl. She doesn’t succeed completely but nevertheless, it works for her progressive character. But of course Rajkummar Rao is a scene – stealer. He’s seen as the shy, demure person and post the transformation, he turns out to be an outgoing, brash guy and he essays both the avatars brilliantly. If Barielly Ki Barfi will be remembered in the years to come, it will be primarily for this National Award winning actor’s performance!!! Pankaj Tripathi as Narrotam Mishra is funny and also excels nicely in emotional scenes. Even he has played roles in the similar setting but he manages to ensure each of his performance stands out. Seema Bhargava leaves a very huge mark. Her constant rants over Bitti’s marriage and the way she sparkles everytime she comes across a prospective groom is nicely done. Rohit Chaudhary as Munna is fine as Chirag’s sidekick. Same goes for Swati Semwal as Maya.

Tail Piece: On the whole, Bareilly Ki Barfi indeed has its moments of “Barfi” oriented sweetness & boasts of great performances but it’s too unconvincing. Also, lack of face value & low – key promotions coupled with insipid music as well as domination by Toilet – Ek Prem Katha will surely spell doom for the film at the Box – Office turnstiles. In fact Barielly Ki Barfi can be strongly recommended for the classy cine goer’s & more suitable for a film festival scenario.