The phone rings. Almost at the same time does the doorbell. The pressure cooker shrieks in the kitchen. Our protagonist jumps up. Memories of Ram Gopal Verma’s Bhoot flood in. No, but its not Verma anna but one more of his chokras (Sriram Raghavan this time) who holds the megaphone, yet again under his banner. The influence is all too visible. The same staccato narration and frenetic pace, almost identical use of the scissors at the editing table, ditto for camera placements, background music …….. Got it?
Urmila works in a travel agency. Mice scare the hell out of her. She eats Maggie for dinner, speaks to her aai frequently, cold-shoulders her lecherous next-door neighbour (the real estate broker of Bhoot), so on and so forth. Life is okayshokay for this gal till she meets charming Saif who smiles his way into her bed and then sends his friend to Urmi’s house for a cuppa chai. Again all’s well till the friend is slaughtered by the cops who pronounce him an underworld gangwala. Urmi’s shocked but before she can react, the cops put bedhis on her and drag her to court much like Anarkali before Akbar in Mughal-e-azam. But shahzada Salim is more of a brute, or should we say Brutus and plays Judas. His lawyer makes her accept her guilt and pronto is put behind bars, in the company of convicts, maniacs, lesbos, desperados, and yes … mice. Her papa dies (suicide or heart-attack shall never be known) out of sharam perhaps and his porgi swears revenge. She escapes from prison (it’s as easy as getting down from a car, believe me) and has a dhamaal taking revenge on Brutus dear.
Unfortunately, she’s the only one who has dhamaal during this period of the film that’s a real dampner where she plans and executes her revenge.
The second half of Ek Hasina Thi is predictable and boring.
Our gal goes to rashtra-capital dilli and swears mujhe insaaf chahiye. She stays in a five-star hotel opposite Brutus bhai, kills a chaddi-wearing ganglord and implicates her ex-aashiq in the crime. Soon, the police who were on her trail start searching desperately for darling dear. So also the underworld. Blood flows like paani in the gangotri. Finally, Urmi proves cleverer than the cops and chains Brutus in a cave infested with … you’re right … mice.
THE END
Ek Hasina Thi was pregnant with possibilities. Unfortunately, the director fails to deliver a bonny baby. There are flashes of brilliance however, and they belong to the RGV school of filmmaking.
Of the cast, Urmila Matondkar shines in an author backed role. Saif Ali Khan is charming yet again, although with a hint of malevolence this time. Seema Biswas is wasted in an insignificant role. Don’t even bother with the others. Their roles have neither brains nor brawn.
So, would I recommend this film? I think I would simply because of the lead pair and an engrossing first half.