Cast: Varun Dhawan, Janhvi Kapoor, Sanya Malhotra, Rohit Saraf, Maniesh Paul, Akshay Oberoi, Nishigandha Vad, Neeraj Sood, Abhinav Sharm...
Cast: Varun Dhawan, Janhvi Kapoor, Sanya Malhotra, Rohit Saraf, Maniesh Paul, Akshay Oberoi, Nishigandha Vad, Neeraj Sood, Abhinav Sharma.
Director: Shashank Khaitan
I’d like
to start my review by stating the fact that Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi
Kumari is a breeze to get through — albeit, it does end up feeling
like a trailer more than a film, a gimmick (if you could even call
it that) that ends up feeling stale in the first ten minutes itself, as was to
be expected if we were to call history credible — and that is probably the best
thing the film has going for it in terms of the viewer’s “immersion”,
not that the film is concerned about it even a little bit.
The film
(or, more aptly put, montage) is Khaitan at his absolute lowest
(keep in mind that I haven’t seen Govinda Naam Mera), boasting a
flimsy narrative, and absolutely futile subplots that never come to fruition
and/or don’t even end on a passable (let alone satisfactory) note —
making the film, by the end, feel like a chore to get through, which is further
exacerbated by le montage. This sense of disappointment
is further heightened by the jokes that rarely — and I mean rarely —
land (the theatre was silent throughout 99% of the film), making one wonder if
Khaitan used up all his good jokes writing Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem
Kahaani.
The
disjointed narrative makes this — more or less — a cognitive nightmare: scenes
cut in between, with no conclusion to anything throughout the film (the CBFC cutting
out scenes that featured the characters kissing doesn’t help either), opting
for misplaced songs in lieu, that do nothing to help the narrative progress
further, just provide a span of three-four minutes for the film to slump and
look around aimlessly. All this would be more bearable if the songs were even
vaguely enjoyable (forget about them being good), which is certainly not the
case.
The
screenplay suffers greatly from the inadequacies on the writer’s (Khaitan)
part, who seems to be under the impression (delusion) that reworking his own
films (Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania and Badrinath Ki Dulhania)
would turn out to be a memorable outing, forgetting that he’s already done that
once in the past (reworking Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania into Badrinath
Ki Dulhania) which in itself was bad enough to make him realise that the
same formula doesn’t work twice (not even thrice) in a row. The film, therewithal,
feels like a bad parody of the two aforementioned films, lacking any bit of
originality (not that one walks into the theatre expecting that), or even humor
— the film feels stale, something one would avoid at any cost.
The
overall trajectory of Varun Dhawan’s career shifted drastically following Kalank (2019),
and what we’re seeing now is him trying his best to grasp at twigs to help him
hang onto the last bit of fame he had. I’m not presumptuous of Dhawan being a
bad actor; I think he’s a fairly competent actor who can act if he works with
an equally, if not more, competent director and has a good script at hand, but
that doesn’t seem to be the case — it hasn’t been the case for the past six
years. Varun Dhawan has lost the boyish charm and pseudo-imbecility that his
characters demand, and, consequently, his performances have started to feel
awkward and forced, with an even thicker layer of overacting. This performance
is no different: it feels forced and awkward, making the viewer cringe and
laugh at it instead of with it, which was
certainly not the case before Kalank. He still possesses the
comedic timing that made his performances enjoyable, but it unfortunately
doesn’t make him any more digestible as the character he’s trying to portray.
Janhvi
Kapoor, as I’ve mentioned time and time again, is not cut out to be an actor.
Her one-dimensional performances do nothing but bring the film down, adding
nothing of substance to the film whatsoever. She might be passable as the “dumb
blonde”, but anything that requires her to act is not her
cup of tea: she’s the contemporary Salman Khan. She’s as rigid as an iron
statue here, flaunting the same expression throughout the film.
Maniesh
Paul and Abhinav Sharma are your typical Hindi film sidekicks who are just
there for the constant comic relief, though, albeit, they end up being the
highlights for me. They’re consistently funny throughout the film, and have
great comic chemistry together; it actually feels like they are trying, unlike
the entire cast.
Sanya Malhotra and Rohit Saraf are both
equally okay in their respective roles, bringing nothing new
to the table, doing the bare minimum their performances demand of them. Their
performances are somewhat enjoyable, but they don’t make the film any better.
The direction from Khaitan feels uninspired
and lacks all the fundamental qualities a director requires. The shots feel
unmotivated, the character arcs feel implausible, and the overall direction of
the film feels faulty. The plot is barely engaging, with it being
built on outdated clichés that take away from any form of cinematic surprise,
both for the characters (in the film) and the audience. The film feels laid
back, not giving a single shit about itself or the audience or the medium, making
it feel like a lazy and cheap cash grab.
Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari tries
to re-invent the charm of the early 2010s rom-coms, but fails
miserably at it and ends up defaming the entire genre.
Two former lovers in Delhi try to rekindle old flames, leading to amusing mix-ups and deceptions. As chaos unfolds, a new unexpected romance blooms. Who will find their happy ending amid the confusion?
By Ravit Mishra
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