Bheja Fry - Humor In Every Situation
No new or good movies in the theatre, & the IPL tournament not allowing me to rush to the cinema halls, Bheja fry last years comedy hit movie was the right pick from my video library. If laughter is said to be the best medicine and movies can be the best way to chuckle and stay fit. Though not many movies come under this category, there are few that surely tickle & Bheja fry is among the list.
The film best suited for theatrically literate persons for its performance based exhibit. Without a star studded cast but with some brilliant script and performances, The film relies on humorous lines and one liners and the dialogues are enjoyable at most times. A low budget film that comes with loads of hilarious gags and brilliant performances.
Good comedies need good actors and not big actors. The film never bores with intense or serious moments but provides laughter and healthy humor in all frames. The specialty of this movie is it brings out humor even during serious moments. This film fares well in all departments (acting, direction, scripting and taut screenplay)
Story : Bheja Fry is a story of a group of affluent high society men who organize talent dinners every Friday night. It’s a dinner where all these riches get in one such idiot of their own, who unassumingly displays his stupid talent and the group is entertained on his expense. The one who gets the most entertaining idiot wins. Ranjeet Thadani (Rajat Kapoor), a music company owner is in hunt of one such ’bakra’ for his talent dinner. And then he stumbles upon Bharat Bhushan (Vinay Pathak) whom he invites home.
Mr. Bharat Bhushan who considers himself as a singer looks forward to this dinner. Ranjeet wife’s Sheetal (Sarika) detests her husband’s nasty ways of deriving fun and leaves the house out of annoyance on the dinner day. Further things go wrong when Bhushan lands up in the house followed by a lot of unexpected guests including Sheetal’s ex-boyfriend (Milind Soman), Ranjeet’s girlfriend (Bhairavi Goswami) and an income tax-officer (Ranvir Shorey).
The film gradually moves and the humor is never missed. Bheja Fry basically describes the turn of humorous events that take place and how Vinay Phatak ends up frying Rajat’s brain on the rather unforgettable Friday night. The main ingredient in this Bheja Fry is an idiot who is the hero of the film
Actors’ performances : The characters are so detailed that each character looks real. The situation creates humor and is not forced unlike contemporary comedies where double meaning dialogues and loud characters force you to laugh at their effortful stupidities.
Without any second thoughts, Bheja Fry belongs whole heartedly to Vinay Pathak. We have seen the actor in small roles here and there but with Bheja Fry, he would emerge as one of the finest comic talents of Indian cinema.
Kudos to Vinay Pathak for his brilliantly delivered performance of bollywood music aficionado turned "idiot" for dinner night. It is he who keeps the flags flying all the time, and makes viewers believe that good sense of comical timing is essential for a good comedy film
Vinay Phatak tries to redefine the art of filmy comedy. He gives an outstanding performance, in fact, one of the best of his career. The actor has tremendous potential and it’s really great to see that he’s well utilizing it.
Rajat Kapoor makes himself prominent in the role of an arrogant and stylish entrepreneur. Sarika has a limited role to play. Milind Soman is pretty good. Ranvir Shorey is good but not great in a short role. Debutante Bhairavi Goswami lives up to her performance while Tom Alter is good in a cameo
Story - screenplay - direction : This film is based on the French film Le Dîner de cons (The Idiots’ Dinner - 1998). It’s difficult to make people laugh and director Sagar Ballary walks a difficult path in his directorial debut. Sagar Ballary experiments with some scurry of thoughts and ideas in making a worthy laugh riot ’Bheja Fry’.
This film that doesn’t impress by its technical finesse of some superior camerawork or editing patterns. The entire essence of the film lies in its well etched script. Screenplay [Sagar Ballary, Arpita Chatterjee] of the film is all right. The director Sagar succeeded in providing good comedy timing. It is extremely difficult to generate comedy when there is almost no story and most of the film location is confined to a house. This film is mostly driven by comical conversations. Direction of the film is pretty good.
Analysis : When you have a gang of actors like Vinay Pathak, Rajat Kapoor, Sarika and Ranvir Shorey the director’s work becomes easy. One place where the film scores heavily is acting. And that again was expected when it comes from the stable of competent actors like Vinay Pathak and Co. They are all good actors but it is easier said than done.
Bheja Fry brings out a message for all half baked directorial talents to be honest, sincere and conceptually innovative in plagiarizing foreign concept in Indian sensibilities. Director Sagar Ballary should be complimented for delivering a cerebral comedy without sexual innuendos and double meaning dialogues.
The film is worth a watch for people who like to laugh. The story of this film is mostly suited for stage plays. The story is not novel and has oft been retold in different ways. It will at best be remembered as a profitable attempt catering to the taste of the urban audience that watches films in multiplexes.
On the whole, Bheja fry is sweet, simple and funny film that will surely bring a smile on your face