Shaadi se Pehle, is a well-made comedy that offers you value for money!
Thematically it is about a hypochondriac Ashish Khanna (Akshayee Khanna) who wants to call of engagement with his lady love Rani (Ayesha Takia) on a mistaken impression that he is suffering from cancer.
He decides to paint himself the villain by getting involved with a sexy siren Sania (Mailika). Sania as luck would have it is the sis of underworld don Anna (Sunil Shetty) who of course would kill any one who would dare to cheat little sexy sis.
There is also Rohit (Aftab Shivdasani) who loves Rani and is willing to take the short route to her heart or what ever.
Though the basic plot of this enterprise is thin, the director has laced the film with moments that tickle your funny bone. The film has a line up of character artistes essaying comedy roles and must say, the light moments are very funny – a factor that would appeal to the hoi polloi.
The only flaw is the film’s excessive length in the second half. The song picturised on Akshay and Mallika can easily be deleted for it serves no purpose in moving the story ahead. Also, the comedy scenes need to be trimmed slightly for better impact.
The performances in film are of a high order. Akshay essays his part with utmost conviction, giving cent percent to his role. Mallika is a pleasure to watch. She delivers the right expressions, her dialogue delivery is flawless and of course, she looks hot, a compliment she has learnt to live with.Ayesha does go overboard at times, but looks wow otherwise. Aftab is just about okay.
Camerawork is a feast to the eyes. Dialogues are excellent. Production values are rich; a lot of money has been spent and it shows on the screen.
On the whole, Shaadi Se Pehle has all it takes to emerge a rewarding experience for its producers, distributors and everyone associated with it.