Director: Raj Kumar Gupta
Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan, Rajesh Sharma,
Namit Das
Different is a much abused term in Bollywood. Almost every other film claims to be different but most end up being run of the mill. And then you have a film like Ghanchakkar that tries to be so deliberately different that the desperation shows. It only ends up being contrived cinema!
Ghanchakkar’ comes from Rajkumar Gupta, who had earlier delivered films like ‘Aamir’ and ‘No One Killed Jessica’. Perhaps, the kind of genres that he has dealt with earlier stand completely in contrast to what this Emraan Hashmi-Vidya Balan starrer aims to unfold.
The genre, style and presentation are indeed the first of its kinds but at the same time, is something that the audiences will find very difficult to digest.
It’s all about Sanjay Athray (Emraan Hashmi) and his ability to break open bank lockers and help thugs. His wife Neetu (Vidya Balan) has a bizarre sense of fashion and almost has a fetish for fashion magazines. She is loud- both literally and otherwise. She is extremely ambitious and pursues her husband to go the illegal way to earn those extra bucks! She is also quite vocal about her greed for money and hence admits to not having any intentions of producing babies with him – as she doesn’t want to introduce Sanju (Sanjay), their father – as a thief!
Sanjay is almost fed-up of his wife’s awful cooking and his mother’s phone calls at nights enquiring if he has had dinner or not. But it is not just about these two women that he gets squeezed in between – he has a bigger trouble in store – Pandit and Idris (his accomplice in a bank robbery mission).
Sanju, Pandit (played by Rajesh Sharma) and Idris (played by Namit Das) succeed in stealing Rs 35 crores from a bank and decide to distribute their shares three months thence, oblivious to what will unfold thereafter.
Vidya Balan and Emraan Hashmi, both powerhouse performers, excel in their respective roles, to say the least. They are supported by some fine performances delivered by Rajesh Sharma (seen earlier with Balan in ‘The Dirty Picture’) and Namit Das. But unfortunately, their impeccable performances can do the least to up the fate of the film at the Box Office.
The climax as a separate chunk is absolutely out-of-the-box. It could have helped had the film gained velocity mid-way through. But when you collectively put it all, it spoils the show, thereby rattling your level of endurance and understanding.
The film does have its share of highs but as a whole, fails to impress.
‘Ghanchakkar’, a film that has such heavyweights as the cast, could have been a lot better.
