The City of Dreams. Since the independence of India, Bombay (I prefer this to Mumbai) still remains the most recognizable city in India. It is in this city that the film industry is located and here where the films get most of their material from.
Of all the contributions made by Bombay to Indian cinema, the single most influential gift it has made to celluloid is the creation of the tapori or bhai. This character has provided roles in cinema for a lot of fine actors and has proven to be award winning turns for a lot of them, or at the very least have become distinguished characters in their resume.
They can be lewd or can be extremely stylish, in any way can influence the style of many a young person, not just because of their mannerisms, but for the bindaas attitude and carefree approach to life that they project. Vastly unforgettable characters were portrayed brilliantly, ranging from Amitabh's Anthony Bhai, to Anil Kapoor?s and Aamir Khan's Munna Bhai which were some of their finest performances, and that?s saying a lot. I do enjoy films based on taporis, and for me the most attractive thing about them is their brand of street-smart humor along with the other qualities. My favorite bhai characters have usually been in the comedic mould, such as Anthony, Munna (Rangeela) and my favorite; Munna Bhai MBBS.
This film, which became a trend setter, is one of the best and most entertaining ones that I have seen. Having said that, let?s go to the review of this modern classic.
Story:
I won?t delve much into the plot of the story, but it deals with the events that happen to a carefree tapori named Murli Prasad Sharma aka Munna Bhai (Sanjay Dutt). He and his right hand Sarkeshwar aka Circuit (Arshad Warsi) operate a gang which indulges in hafta vasuli. However, they are decent as they don?t perform injustice and only loot criminals. They are very carefree except for one tradition which all of them have to obey; once a year they don the garb of doctors and their dhobi ghat becomes a clinic! Novel you might say, indeed it is since Munna having run away from his village, keeps his parents in the ruse that he is a doctor with a hospital in his father Hari Prasad?s (Sunil Dutt) name.
They have kept this ruse up for a long time, but this time things go haywire, courtesy a certain Dr. Asthana (Boman Irani) who exposes them when Sharma Sr, goes to ask for his daughter?s (Gracy Singh) hand in marriage for Munna, resulting in Munna vowing revenge by deciding to become a doctor. What happens next, is what forms the crux of the plot.
Cons:
Not much that I could find which was too jarring since this movie was projected as a sort of fantasy and was to be viewed in that vein.
Pros:
Everything. For me the biggest reason of watching any movie is entertainment, and this one definitely ranks high up there. Very irrational, it is made to be more like a fantasy because of which the goings around are that much more entertaining and quite touching. There are various sequences in the film which are funny and it wouldn?t do if I were to list every one of them here, suffice it to say this is one of the most entertaining movies ever and definitely ranks amongst my top 10.
Direction:
For a debut director Rajkumar Hirani does a brilliant job, both with sentimental and comedic sequences. I believe that making a comedy is no mean feat and that too in your debut feature. That he made such an engrossing and deft movie is very commendable.
The brilliant work by Abbas Tyrewaala with the dialogs does merit a mention; as the people on Mouthshut would say ROFL stuff by him.
And now to the performances:
In any comedy, the characters performing must in my opinion be at the top of their game and should not be trying to outdo one another since it could just create a negative impact on the scene and movie if one of the principal characters comes off looking weak. It is a pleasure then to see the principal players complement each other on screen to provide laughs unlimited in their time on screen together. For this reason alone I will mention one scene each for every artiste who made that moment his own. Without further ado;
Sunil Dutt: Making a comeback after many years of retirement, his was a role which although did not have many histrionics, did require a man who could portray the arrogance and pride for which he lives convincingly and it must be said that Sunil Dutt did exceedingly well in his role. His scenes with Sanjay Dutt were quite impressive and seemed quite authentic.
Notable scene: The scene when he is returning back to his village, disappointed. What impressed me was that he had the maximum scope to shout and be melodramatic here, but he was subtle and the anger he conveyed through his expressions allowed him to dominate.
Boman Irani: Brilliant is the word. I just wonder where this actor had been for all this while, for in one of the best comedic performances I have seen in years, he nearly steals the show from everyone else in this enterprise, although there was more than one award worthy performance. The way he gave the audience a glimpse into the rage within him only to calm it down with laughter therapy was hilarious beyond words. A brilliant performance by a fine actor, who I hope to see more of.
Notable scene: The scene where Sanjay Dutt tells him that he is no more in love with Chinky and that he loves Suman instead, not knowing she is one and the same. The expressions on Boman Irani?s face were just priceless.
Arshad Warsi: I have been a fan of his since I saw him in Tere Mere Sapne, as he had that very sprightly and confident air about him when he performed. I thought he had brilliant comic timing and that he was a natural. However after a dream debut he just languished for years, a little due to bad luck and more due to bad career moves. Yet, he got another chance with this movie and boy did he GRAB it. Absolutely mind-blowing is the word for him, he takes what would?ve become a caricature and turns it into one of the wackiest characters ever made on film. His performance shows his flair for improvisation and proves his status as one of the best Indian comics.
Notable scene: The scene where he abducts a Chinese tourist to take to Munna bhai, his acting in that scene is enough to make my sides split.
Sanjay Dutt: Although I was a fan of his, I didn?t think he was that versatile, in fact I thought he wouldn?t surpass Vaastav. But he proved me wrong with what is arguably his best performance ever. Munna bhai has become a character whom people associate Sanjay Dutt with and that goes to show the impact that his performance made on people. I don?t think I can give a bigger compliment to Dutt than this.
Notable scene: He is at his best comedic form in the sequences when his father comes to visit him at his ?hospital?. However that is just one sequence since his is the one presence which is there in almost every memorable sequence.
The others such as Gracy Singh, Jimmy Shergill, Rohini Hattangady were all very good in their respective roles. In fact special mention to the actors playing Dr. Rustam and his Papa, their scenes were brilliant.
Conclusively speaking, to me this is one of the best movies that I have ever seen from India in all aspects. Definitely a modern classic, I doubt such a refreshing movie will come in a long while and all I can say is that even if Mr. Hirani doesn?t make another movie, this movie will grant him a place in cinematic history, for its brilliance.
Abhi bus kya, apun sub taporilog ko yeh picture ekdum jhakaas laga aur tumko yeh review? Bole to, jaisa bhi laga accha ya ekdum thakela, ek rating aur ussay jyaada jaroori, e
