Delhi Belly

Only Aamir Khan could have blended pizza with bhelpuri and made it look appealing and so seamlessly appetising. It’s another matter that such a film would not have got an audience if it had not been associated with the actor,who does quite an amusing Mithun Chakraborty tribute in his crazy item number,I hate you like I love you.

After the script and Aamir’s association,it is the music (composed by Ram Sampath) that is the third ace of this film. All the songs make an impact even if they are used in the background in fragments,except for I hate you and — in a hilarious sequence — a part of Jaa chudail. The soundtrack has helped lure the audiences as much as the rest of the film’s vibe.

A statutory warning: Delhi Belly is not for the faint-hearted — there are no holds barred here in either the action or the expletive-laden lines and steamy visuals. The hoity-toity ones can stay away too: Aamir,Mr Propah himself in so many aspects,delivers the exception that proves his cinematic rule. Potentially,this film could have been as offensive as the Shaitan kind of fare.

But it’s not—because there is a key difference in both content and packaging. As one journeys along with Tashi (Imran Khan),Arup (Vir Das) and Nitin (Kunal Roy Kapoor) on their misadventures with everyone and everything from toilet cisterns to dons,we don’t stop laughing and chortling. Yes,a lot of the humour is of the toilet/cheesy variety that would have put off the audience and make critics bristle had it been present in an Anees Bazmee-Indra Kumar enterprise,but that’s where Khan’s upmarket branding comes in again to stymie thought and seal lips.

The content is crisp and tight: there are no loose ends and the story moves logically,carrying us with the flow and amazingly not revolting us despite some graphic violence and a barrage of words that are normally beeped out. The censors are the film’s true heroes!

Such is the dynamic of a wonderful and smart script (Akshat Verma) and such is the strategic craft of an astute producer and a competent director (Abhinay Deo — can this be the man who gave us the silly Game earlier?). Because a lot of classic Hindi film formulae (loathed by the majority of Delhi Belly’s target audience of GenerationX) are positioned shrewdly here to give a realistic look: the lead characters in disguise as Muslim ladies in a burqa,the landlord blackmailed in a comic way,the Pushpak-like saga of a parcel that literally contains shit,the successful but mediocre dancer (Anusha Dandekar),the jewellery heist,the doll containing the hidden diamonds and the jealous boyfriend (Rahul Singh) are straight out of classic Hindi cinema. Yet the film is as similar to a masala movie as cheese to chalk.

The actors are all wonderful for their roles,Vir Das and Kunal Roy Kapoor effortlessly stealing the show. Imran develops as an actor and the production values are top-rate.

The flipside? Just two: one,don’t watch this one with either your kids or family. The second: we know Aamir Khan will move on and not make a second film like this. But we hope lesser talents are not encouraged to make terrible wannabe movies like this one,simply because this worked.

Rating: ****

One star for the script and dialogues,one star for the music,one star for the cast and one star for all those daredevils responsible for letting this project happen and reach the screen.