A tedious effort at making a comedy
ends up with the audience also feeling tedious watching it. The problem with
this Ashwani Dhir attempt at tickling you is that it is so laboured and
consequently contrived that you laugh with an effort.
The boisterous Punjabi backdrop for a slap stick revenge drama is just what the
doctor ordered. Yet the translation and for the informed the remake from the
Telugu original Maryada Ramana loses its plot too early and you are left
laughing at PJs rather than at the happenings in the film.
Jaswingder Singh – or Jessi (Ajay Devgn) living abroad has just finished his
musical eulogy in favour of the Sardar. He next gets to bashing up a set of
goons. Now he makes Rajnikant and Sachin Tendulkar look human in compare. He
has just inherited some huge property back at Phagwara. Jessi thus lands in
apni desh ki dharti after sharing train space with Punjabi lass Sukhvinder or
Sukh (Sonakshi Sinha). At Phagwara we have an entire family waiting to avenge
Jessi on the basis of some family feud that has been on for some centuries and
is more locally popular than the Ashes.
The members of the feuding family includes Balwinder Singh – Billu (Sanjay
Dutt), Tony (Mukul Dev) and Tito (Vindo Dara Singh – who continues to look
stupid without any effort). They have spent a life time in wait for decades and
have been egged on by an aged matriarch (Tanuja). Alright for humour the guys
Tony and Tito have pledged not to have ice cream and cool-drinks till they
avenge the death of their kith in the family feud. Blissfully unaware that he
is the victim of the revenge plan, Jessi comes to the village to take stock of
his property alienate it and go back to bashing goons in London. He walks
straight into the lion’s den- and that is to his advantage. The unwritten
custom with Billu et al is that they shall not attack any person in their house
based on the Athiti devo bhava theory. Having come to know of the plan Jessi
decides to stay within the house and the members of the family are waiting to
get at him once he sets foot outside the house.
There is also Parmeet – Pammi (Juhi Chawla) who is a adi suhagan – wedded to
Billu in mind and soul but waiting for the revenge drama to unfurl before she
walks up the altar to take him as her lawfully wedded husband. He has vowed to
stay away from the distraction of matrimony till he gets Jessi off the planet.
The next point without a twist is that cupid strikes Jessi and Sukhi.
The resultant cacophony is what the script is about and is loud as they come.
The ambience and the title seem to justify the path taken. The film however has
some good performances to recommend. While Sonakshi continues to do what she
does in every film, Sanjay Dutt carries his dead pan signature expression with
characteristic ease. Ajay Devgn gets a script close to his heart and could
mentally just walked out of a Rohit Shetty set.
Classy comedy has never been a Bollywood menu. The latest offering is just in
tune.
L. Ravichander