That was the request of my totally ticked off mother. Dad not in town, me having to spend the evening with my ’’sweet n sour’’ personality mom, who was choosing to be really sour that day. What could I say, mom loves you, but that day wasn’t a red letter one. Usually my clowning around cheers her up but looks like my monkey antics weren’t going to be enough, until......
Until I asked my mandli of inspiration for comedy, the gang of Andaz Apna Apna to come to my rescue, and talk about a rescue, within minutes mom chuckling like a schoolgirl, and me breathing a sigh of relief while trying not to choke with laughter on my ice cream.
That time must have been the 50th time I watched that movie and having watched it 50 times since, I still laugh like a hyena upon viewing it. That to me is the mark of an everlasting comedy, and they dont come any more legendary and everlasting than this comedy of fools.
So, Whats the Plot:
The story ( if it can be called that ) is something to the tune of two losers; Amar (Aamir Khan) and Prem (Salman Khan) wanting to make it big, not by working hard mind you, but by marrying two dumb heiresses Raveena and Karishma (Raveena and Karishma before their glamour days....god be praised for make up and cosmetic surgery). They are the daughters of Ram Gopal Bajaj (Paresh Rawal) who is a multi millionaire and soon they find that they alone are not after the wealth, they have competition in the form of Shyam Gopal Bajaj aka Teja, Ram Gopal’s evil twin (Paresh again). Teja and his two hoods Robert (Viju Khote) and Bhalla (Shehzad) are after the Bajaj millions.
Add to this Crime Master Gogo (Shakti Kapoor), (who I wont say much about, he has to be seen to be believed, trust me) another bandit for the money, and craziness will ensure, leaving in its wake, its audience who will have laughed up tears and will be rolling in the aisles. If the story seems non-committal that?s because it is, the story itself is merely a light base for the madcap situations that ensue. It is the quintessential ’’leave your brains at the door’’ comedy (in the name of which David Dhawan later gave us tragedies instead).
I am a firm believer that a movie means entertainment, be it of any sort. Mass appealing and class appealing are merely words to me, if a movie entertains me then that is my purpose fulfilled, and being a movie buff, I can safely say that there have hardly been more entertaining movies, in India than this one. Cliches aside, I genuinely felt that this movie was clean wholesome and an actual family movie, which is universal in its appeal.
Direction:
Raj Kumar Santoshi, in only his third film, Wowed me with his versatility, be it his direction or scriptwriting. Even the staunchest of critics will agree that making comedy, be it of any sort is not easy, yet this man managed to pack enough comedy to last 3 hours and did it with panache. For someone directing their debut comedy, this movie should be a textbook of how to write dialogs and how to direct a comedy.
Performances:
A comedy does require some serious acting clout for it to be entertaining and this movie delivers in spades.
Aamir Khan As Amar: Even though these days he prefers heavy duty stuff, there was a time when I felt Aamir Khan had the best comic timing and the best ability to carry off light hearted roles since Rishi Kapoor. This movie sees as Aamir at his comedic best, definitely one of the best performances of the 90’s. Sad he doesnt do comedy more often, he definitely is one of the best in my book.
Salman Khan As Prem: Salman Khan for all his infamity, is a good actor provided he is guided well. For someone who never tried comedy before this movie, his performance was natural and quite mindblowing. And it is surprising that the two Khans never came together again, despite having a palpable screen chemistry.
Raveena and Karishma as well, Raveena and Karishma: Their acting requirements were quite minimal in this male dominated affair, although Karishma did give a good account of herself.
Paresh Rawal as Ram Gopal Bajaj/Teja: Brilliant. I cant say any more about his superlative performance, because I cant express my hilarity at his performance as both Teja and Ramu in words. Truly one for the ages by an actor for the ages.
Vijoo Khote and Shehzad were completely natural and quite hysterical in their parts, as their humour and reactions contributed to some of the best scenes in the movie. But the show stealer had to be none other than the mother of all cameos, (drum roll please.....) Shakti Kapoor as Crime Master Gogo!
If you remember no one from this movie, at least you will have a vivid recollection of this cape wearing criminal/buffoon. Definitely one of Shakti’s best.
The supporting cast performed brilliantly in the short time allotted to them, pity I dont remember their names now, but excellent job nonetheless by pretty much everyone who spoke in this movie.
However:
On the flip side, the music was nothing to write home about and the production values, well the less said the better, they were tacky considering the magnitude of the cast and the movie. Also some action sequences were not required, and the sudden transition of the buffoons to heroes, was just a tad simplistic.
Conclusion:
Hey but who’s complaining? Despite its flaws, which I might say one notices only after the movie is done ( since they are too busy trying to contain themselves during it ) the movie is one solid blast of entertainment which is timeless and always a good laugh.
And now I know that when my buffoonery and comedy isnt enough to cheer my mom up, I can always go to the master clown and buffoons. Rest assured they will save the day. So don’t delay, watch it today and if you had the patience to listen to my yapping then just bear a bit more, and leave some comments or criticism, either is appreciated.
Till then, peace to all
Faraz.
PS: According to me this movie can be watched and enjoyed with anyone, but I found it to be most fun watching it with friends, hence the recommendation of friends.