Take it or leave it

Nonika Singh

If you have seen Judwa, you know the drill and what can we tell you that you already don’t know? If you are familiar with David Dhawan and his brand of mindless comedies, you know the film will not offer you any sense, let alone logical reasoning or enlightening revelations. So, Judwaa 2 is a film one enters with least expectations and we advise you, too, follow the same brief.

Barring a few laughs, some gimmicks, gigs and a sense- defying plot, this tale of twins separated at birth is as pointless perhaps as its original. Though we have no recollection of the 1990s Salman Khan-starrer super-hit whose reboot it claims to be, we know Sallu Bhai’s shoes are not the easiest to fit in. In the last scene the superstar himself arrives in twofold avatar shaking a leg to the original hit song, Chalti hai kya nau se barrah…

And you know why, to begin with, Varun Dhawan can’t seem to get his tapori act together. For who can mouth inane lines the way Salman does…who can match the pelvic thrusting shake he has mastered in delighting us with. But of course, Varun, a consummate dancer and an actor of fair caliber, seems to falter only for a while.

The moment his long locks as Raja are shed and he finds himself in the same terrain (London, it is, my dear) as his long lost twin brother, it’s hard to choose between his two endearing parts. Beating up others or getting bashed up, romancing the girls or turning all gooey, Varun proves his competency in each segment of his twin act. Since he comes in twosome, so does everything else, not in twin avatar though.

There are two heroines (Jacqueline Fernandez beats Taapsee Pannu in the dumb girl act and looks more glamorous too), two villains and then there seems to be an army of comedians. Besides veterans, such as Anupam Kher and Rajpal Yadav, there is a strong seasoning of comic talent from the world of television such as Upasana Singh and Ali Asgar. Lest we forget there is gifted actor Pavan Malhotra as the police man on the tail of Raja. But all the Dhawan men can’t bring the house down. That is not to say the film is singularly mirthless. Individually each one does bring a smile to your lips. Even at the risk of offending gender-sensitive feminists and socially correct cine buffs, dare we say the film has its moments and a pretty fine pace too. Not meant to be a thinking man’s film, it actually leaves little time to think or ponder.

Beyond critic’s critical faculty to critique, aimed at masses it has a ‘massey’ appeal and belongs to the “watch it, forget it” variant of Indian cinema. Dil pe bhoj mat le yaar. This dialogue may not appear in the film that otherwise abounds with so many references to films and their iconic dialogues that not only do you lose track but also stop smiling at the pun intended, not intended barrage. Moot point; should you be humming Chalti hai kya nau se baara, ahem, watch it or not…well if you have moved on since Judwaa last came and want your cinema to have some bite and content, we advise not. Otherwise, remember to wear you chalta hai attitude for this chalti hai (time-pass) entertainment.