This is an unpretentious, harmless spoof of south Indian cinema at its most
bizarre. The film is not up for any debate. Having laughed his way to the Bank
with Singhamam, he decides to take pot shots and harmless ones at that on tne
exaggerated style. Be it the of SUVs, the high voltage gang fights with axes
aplenty, the large large families bursting in the seems with goodness aplenty
each aspect is picked with the élan of a Sai Paranjapee. Only the genre at the
which the spoof is aimed is different. (Remember the original Chasme Badoor!!)
So let go your thinking caps and settle down with the large bucket of popcorn
and laugh your way for a good part of the 142 minutes. Rohit Shetty has always
claimed that he made a kind of cinema. He is obviously enjoying a go up mode
and is in fine form.
Not surprisingly, the story is not what you have to talk about here. Simply
told Rahul (Shahrukh Khan) at the diktat of Dadi (Kamini Kaushal) is required
to immerse the ashes of grandpa who like Sachin got out at 99. Set to go to
Rameshwaram, his friends decide that Goa is the place as the beach waters would
any way reach Rameshwaram. Rahul takes the Chennai Express and here begins the journey
to disaster.
Rahul helps Meenamma (Deepika) alight the moving train ala DDLJ and soon has a
whole team of hooligans to whom the same benefit is extended. As things
transpire, Meena is on the run refusing to marry Dad’s chosen bridegroom and
the goons are her dad’s henchmen who are behind her. Dad (Satyaraj) is the
local Goon and his writ runs large. For starts even the train stops as a matter
of practice in his village when he wants it and the entire village is on the
railway tracks to bring home the daughter on the run.
At the spur of the moment Meenamma tells dad that Rahul is the guy who loves
her and thus the suitor Tangaballi (Nikitin Dheer) will have to give way.
Obviously all are not satisfied. The entire film is about how the two
eventually fall in love and every one from their respective stances accept the
two some. Their escapades and their adventures is what the script is fully
about.
With language being a barrier, the fun element lingers there for a while. The
guy and gal on the run with hordes of villains chasing them is fun as long as
it lasts. The timing is superb, the humour harmless. Cinematography (Dudley) is
amazing. Very early in the film the way Rohit interpolates the happenings in
the train with the scenic outside sets the tempo. The script is racy. It is
only when later the film maker falls a temptation to his own spoof that the
credibility and the narration takes a beating. The romance could have been
seamless.
The laugh riot is engaging and invokes instant reactions of great laughter
often from the crowd and this means Rohit is all set to strengthen his place in
100 Crores club. If, if only he had steered clear of the soppy romance part the
pic would have even laid claims to being a classic spoof. Rohit Shetty is a
blast and is in great form with his one liners and stand up humour. If you
thought Deepika looked gorgeous in her hot pants watch out for this one. She is
amazing in her saries and has taken her acting skills up a few notches. She has
actually begun to act. Shahrukh Khan has a role just made for him. With no
restraint he just has to ham with no restraint and what more can he ask for!!
His fans would sure love this journey with him where things go wrong because
they have to.
The journey is all fine and speed filled till the near end when Rohit decides
to move from speed gauge to romance. Even otherwise, take your ticket and
travel light on this trip.
L. Ravichander.