Ghanchakkar Review {2/5} & Review Rating
After attempting the shockingly real AAMIR and fight-for-justice human drama NO ONE KILLED JESSICA, both grim and gritty celluloid offerings, Rajkumar Gupta now tiptoes into an unfamiliar terrain with GHANCHAKKAR, his first light-hearted entertainer with a twist in the end.
As a matter of fact, GHANCHAKKAR is one of those rare films that attempts to marry crime and humor. But the film, which does boast of a fascinating premise, goes awry after an attention-grabbing start. Reasons? The screenwriting lacks meat, the pacing is sluggish and the culmination, which should've been the icing on the cake, is an anti-climax.
In a nutshell, the winning combo -- Gupta-Vidya [NO ONE KILLED JESSICA] and Emraan-Vidya [THE DIRTY PICTURE] -- misfires this time!
Sanju [Emraan Hashmi] decides to team up with two criminals, Pandit [Rajesh Sharma] and Idris [Namit Das], to commit one last heist. A bank robbery that will ensure he doesn't have to worry about money again. Everything goes according to plan. Sanju is entrusted with the responsibility of hiding the money till things cool down and the booty can be split. Two months later, Pandit and Idris return to collect their share of the loot, but Sanju refuses to recognize them. He claims to have lost his memory. Has he? Or is he lying?
With a plot that had the potential to transform into an engaging and outrageous entertainer, GHANCHAKKAR gets repetitive and tedious after Gupta introduces the four pivotal characters. Everything's fine till Emraan, Rajesh and Namit pull off the heist, but the writers run out of ideas after this point actually. Ideally, the film should've sky-rocketed after the goons return to collect the loot, but what unravels seems repetitive and cyclic. To make matters worse, the episodes are unexciting, humdrum and monotonous.
The post-interval portions have their moments, but they are few and far between. The spectator gets immersed in the narrative, albeit briefly, when the finger of suspicion points towards Vidya. But the culmination to the tale throws a wet blanket. It would be unfair to reveal the twist in the tale, but all I can say is that the film should've ended on a terrific note, but it doesn't.
Gupta carts the burden of over expectations on his shoulders, since his last two endeavors had met with critical commendation and commercial success. Will he outdo himself with GHANCHAKKAR, the vital question crosses your mind before the commencement of the film. But the writing lets him down and how! With a bland and lackluster screenplay on hand, there's not much Gupta can do to salvage the show. The soundtrack [Amit Trivedi] too is below the mark. 'Allah Meherbaan' looks completely forced, while the title track [end credits] is functional. Cinematography is passable.
The four actors [Emraan, Vidya, Rajesh and Namit] put their best foot forward. Emraan makes an earnest effort to deviate from his on-screen image and he does exceptionally well. It's indeed refreshing to see Emraan go full throttle to get the part right. Known for choosing qualitative films, Vidya delivers a knock-out performance yet again. Playing a Punjabi housewife, Vidya sure knows how to entertain. Frankly, it's a new Vidya that you get to see in GHANCHAKKAR, who gets the comic timing spot on.
Rajesh Sharma, who impressed the audience in NO ONE KILLED JESSICA and LUV SHUV TEY CHICKEN KHURANA, is in super form. Namit Das has grown tremendously as an actor, since WAKE UP SID. He's another talent to look forward to. Parvin Dabas is satisfactory in a cameo. The actor [who appears in the final stages of the film] lacks fervor.
On the whole, GHANCHAKKAR has splendid performances by its principal cast, but the bland and tedious narrative plays spoilsport. This one disheartens!
