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| CULTURE & SOCIETY |
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FILM REVIEW |
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Farah Khan and Boman Irani Ki Toh Nikal Padi
Go see Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi and you will have a floppy grin every time you recall the romance, says Karuna John
Sometimes it’s best to get to the point of a film review really fast. Don't miss Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi. There, done. Now for the reasons why this is a film worth your while. Simple, sometimes you just need to see a sweet fun movie with a liberal dose of "awww" factor.
Veteran editor Bela Bhansali Sehgal and her brother Sanjay Leela Bhansali have brought you a film that you can take even your mother to. And you probably should. Who knows, she may recognise a trait in common with Mrs Pastakia (Daisy Irani), who is the so-loving-that-she-is-always-interfering mother to her baby boy — 45-year-old Farhad (Boman Irani). While she just wants a bahu to take over her mothering duties, her middle-aged, and possibly virgin, boy lives in the hope of finding everlasting love. Enter the “girl” the nearly-40 Shirin (Farah Khan). It’s amazing how much talent Khan actually has. One of the most celebrated film choreographers, Khan is the true star of this movie. She wears her dancing shoes with her acting outfit. Glowing and confident, Khan’s portrayal of Shirin is a lesson in how important casting is in filmmaking.
The lead couple keeps it real; yet do not let the audience forget their screen versions. You may feel a bit sorry for Boman Irani, who is almost always expected to deliver whichever character he is cast to play. However, as a Bawa-playing-a-Bawa, he still seems to have done his homework. This Bawa rattles off Marathi better than any local manoos and eventually realises that the thing that keeps him upright is actually a spine. Much dillydallying and a few emotional highs and lows later, “girl” and “boy” figure out they are made for each other.
They do so with a few fun songs; Usha Uthup’s zesty 'Ramba Mein Samba', the cute title song or the sadly sexy 'Kaafir Andhere', woven in at the right moments.
Parsiana cinema connoisseurs in the audience will figure out that the screenplay is bumpy in places and most of the Bawa clichés are sprinkled liberally all over it. They drink Dukes mango and raspberry drinks, eat eedu (eggs) and talk at the same time, go nuts and still are jovial.
Since non-Parsis haven’t really grown up with Baug stories, we will feel like we may still want this lot of characters as neighbours. Entertainment guaranteed, silence not guaranteed. You may want to forgive them though. The movie is not one to be put under the microscope of cinematic critique. It's light and fun, a palate cleanser of sorts between the overwritten SFX-laced films with glossy star casts and item numbers. It’s nowhere real to documentary-esque ‘real’ cinema that woos the festival circuit.
See Shirin Farhad… to relax, have a few laughs. See it to applaud the simple stories we need to hear to calm our souls. See it because it is worth it.
Karuna John is Associate Editor, Tehelka.com.
karuna@tehelka.com
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