Dedh Ishqiya - Must watch

Ishqiya was a brilliant all round movie with top class acting, gripping script and classy cinematography. A sequel would be challenging to make as sequels  are seldom better or even as good as the original. So with a sense of foreboding I landed up to watch Dedh Ishqiya one Saturday afternoon, only to be pleasantly surprised at the outcome :)

The casting in the movie is as great as the first one. Naseeruddin (Khalu) and Arshad (Babban) are arguably the most lovable Scoundrels on the screen today. Madhuri and Huma , most probably, a pairing no one saw coming do a fine job of adding a twist to the ending.. The rest play a great supporting cast (Vijay Raaz as Jaan Mohammed and Manoj Pahwa as Noor Mohammed Italvi...

The movie starts with Babban in trouble with his uncle and is about to be buried. His uncle treats him a reason to keep on living and allows his to escape from time to time. The two scoundrels are upto no good as usual and steal a necklace. However, the heist goes wrong and the two have to separate. Babban gives up Khalu as lost/dead. 

The movie revolves around a challenge thrown by Shahi Begum (aka Madhuri), who has proclaimed that she would marry any poet who can win her heart. Its an open challenge and many wannabe's who want to win her heart come to compete. One of the competitors is obviously Jaan Mohammed , the local goonda who wants to be a Nawab and is rich. The other is Khalujaan, who has been yearning for Shahi Begum for a long time.  The entire plot revolves around the shenanigans of this ensemble to win her heart. A word for Huma Qureshi - she plays  Madhuri's lady in waiting (a brazen hussy with no qualms!!) quite convincingly. She comes across as a sensual temptress of yore and is a welcome addition to the script. 

The script is good at the start and maintains the momentum, but somewhere towards the last 45 mins, it starts meandering and borders on the ridiculous. I agree with the writers who wanted to give a twist to the ending, but the manner in which it has been executed leaves the much to be desired. 

Acting is top class and makes the film engaging. Madhuri and Naseeruddin once again prove that good actors need not get sidelined to Mom-Dad roles when they age. They can play the lead comfortably and carry it off. 

The movie is slow placed and full of twists like the old historical drama's. The ending is unconventional and  is probably a first in Hindi movies. I would recommend people to watch it atleast once to develop a taste for a finely crafted movie unlike the wham-Bams like Dhoom 3 and chennai express that we are slowly getting accustomed to. 

Rating - *** 1/4

4084 CHAALIS CHAURASI - REVIEW

Its not often, that in the recent past, a movie comes along, with no item number, no herione and with 4 main stream actors who are known for their off beat roles. With an intriguiging title like Chaalis Chaurasi  or 4084 (Reminds one of TAXI 9211-follow the link to watch the complete movie ), I was left wondering what it could be about. The posters did indicate that there were some vehicles involved and I thought the movie would be centered around the same. Was I sadly mistaken - well yes, to some extent..

The movie is primarily centered around 4 men, One a disgraced English professor Mr Puri - Naseerudin Shah (who killed his wife inadvertently when they had a showdown over his affair with another teacher and then served a jail sentence for the same, and now is presently teaching English cum Driver to a rich business man),  A wannabe singer, Atul Kulkrarni aka Bobby- who had to give up his dreams to become a pimp (a rather successful one, a drug dealer - Ravi Kishen- who tells us not to lecture him on selling drugs and not buy it if not interested) and finally Kay Kay Menon - as Albert Pinto, a retro car loving thief... These four men have one thing in common- to get out of their present rut and retire for life - But no clue on how to go about it.

So then Puri (or 'Sir" as he is known), comes up with an  extremely simple plan, which can get them enough money, split 4 ways, to retire for life. They make their plans as the movie goes along, running into various obstacles (or twists in the plot largely due to their fondness for liquor and bar girls). If and only if they can pull off this 20 crore heist will they be able to realise their dreams. What stands in their way is a corrupt crime branch officer, a renegade gangster (tony bisleri) and a host of other quirky characters. The significance of the number 4084 is known only towards the end...which is a good thing.!!!

Why should you watch it? Well, four fine actors, a reasonably strong storyline with lots of twist and turns, good editing and screenplay, good dialogues and the evergreen hit Hawa Hawa.

Why you should'nt ?  Some tiresome songs and background music, the almost comical ending, which is a little stupid and stretches the sensibilities.

Overall - A 3 out of 5 for a pleasant watching experience.
Read the Times of India review, the DNA review and the Indian Express review  to get another perspective.