Mubarakan Movie Review: Mubarakan is a fine entertainer that should appeal to the family audiences big time.

Mubarakan Review {3.0/5} & Review Rating

MUBARAKAN revolves around the family of twin brothers and the madness that occurs as a result. Karan (Arjun Kapoor) is based in London while Charan (Arjun Kapoor), his twin brother, lives in Punjab. Karan is in love with Sweety (Ileana DCruz) while Charan loves Nafisa (Neha Sharma). Unfortunately, both are unable to tell their respective immediate family members about their relationship. Meanwhile, Jitto (Ratna Pathak Shah) who has taken care of Karan decides to fix the marriage of Charan with Binkle (Athiya Shetty), daughter of the very rich Mr Sandhu (Rahul Dev). Charan obviously is against this development and he seeks the help of his uncle Kartar (Anil Kapoor). He successfully manages to make sure that Charan and Binkle’s marriage does not get fixed but it also results in a major tiff between Jitto and Balwinder (Pavan Malhotra), Jitto’s brother and Charan’s guardian. And that’s not all. Balwinder fixes Charan’s marriage with Sweety while Jitto decides that Karan should tie the knot with Binkle. How the twin brothers and Kartar try to solve their problems and thereby add to the confusion forms the rest of the film.

MUBARAKAN doesn’t have a proper commencement. Too much information is fed to the viewers in the first ten minutes. The introduction of characters is done haphazardly and even the jokes at this point aren’t that funny. However, the fun begins in the sequence where Charan goes to Binkle’s mansion for arranged marriage talks and hell breaks loose. From here, the film goes on a high and boasts of several funny and dramatic sequences. The intermission point arrives at a great point. Shockingly, the film goes downhill in second half. The film ceases to be funny and gets stretched. The film picks up in the climax and the film thankfully ends on a good note.

Balwinder Singh Janjua and Rupinder Chahal’s story is complicated but has promise. Balwinder Singh Janjua and Gurmmeet Singh’s screenplay however makes the proceedings simplified. Despite the madness and double role, audiences never get confused. Rajesh Chawla’s dialogues are one of the highpoints of the film. The one-liners are hilarious and take many scenes several notches higher.

Anees Bazmee’s direction is simple which is much needed, given the complicated plot. Also, he is a pro, having handled many well-made, complicated capers in the past like NO ENTRY, WELCOME, READY and WELCOME BACK. Also, he has used the whole Punjabi element very well that would be loved by the same community.

Coming to performances, Arjun Kapoor does very well in both roles. As Karan, he is mischievous and appears extra confident. As Charan, he gets the shy, demure bit very nicely. Moreover, there are several scenes where both the characters appear together and it must have been hectic for the actor to perform the scenes twice. But he does it very well. Anil Kapoor is the soul of the film. It’s because of him that the film gets its masala and humour. What’s endearing is that he not only makes viewers laugh but also makes your eyes moist in several scenes. Praiseworthy! Ileana D’Cruz looks glamorous and performs her part confidently. She could have gone wrong but she allows herself to go overboard only till a point. Athiya Shetty looks a bit different and has lesser screen time than other major characters. But she does better than her debut film (HERO) and shows promise. Ratna Pathak Shah who rocked the show last week with LIPSTICK UNDER MY BURKHA does yet another great job in this film. Pavan Malhotra surprises with his yet another powerhouse performance. Neha Sharma has a crucial part in the film and does a fine job. She deserves to be seen more. Rahul Dev is another actor who surprises, as he makes one forget all his past villainous performances. Karan Kundra leaves a mark. The rest of the characters do a good job.

In a family entertainer like MUBARAKAN, songs ideally should have been a crucial part of the enterprise. Surprisingly, not a single song is memorable enough. ‘Hawa Hawa’ is probably the best track of the lot. ‘The Goggle Song’ is the next best. ‘Jatt Jaguar’ and the sad ‘Haathon Mein Thhe Haath’ were unwanted. Amar Mohile’s background score is filmy and exhilarates impact.

Durgaprasad Mahapatra’s production design and Himman Dhamija’s cinematography are very appealing and gives the film a rich look. The work by the VFX team also deserves praise for making the double role bit look so seamless and real. Rameshwar S Bhagat’s editing could have been tighter as the film drags at places in the second half.

On the whole, MUBARAKAN is a fine entertainer that should appeal to the family audiences big time. It has a strong Punjabi element that should enhance the film’s prospects in North India, Canada and Australia. At the box office, it will have a good ride for a week as it comes sans any competition. Worth a watch.