Mumbai: Film: “Kis Kisko Pyar Karoon”

Rating – **

Director:  Abbas-Mustan;

Cast: Kapil Sharma, Manjari Phadnis, Simran Kaur Mundi, Elli Avaram, Sai Lokur, Arbaaz Khan, Manoj Joshi, Varun Sharma, Jamie Lever, Supriya Pathak, Sharat Saxena.
Karan, one of the characters in the film often says, “Tumne science to padhi hogi; agar nahin, toh phir to tum yeh aur acche se samjhoge (you must have studied science; if not, then you would understand this even better).”

Well, I am quite sure this logic applies to the film “Kis Kisko Pyar Karoon” as well, which obviously lacks rationale and logic.

Coming from the stable of director duo, Abbas-Mustan of “Baazigar” fame, one steps in the theatre with a lot of expectations.

But a few minutes into the film, and one realises it is a mere extension of “Comedy Nights with Kapil” and the protagonist Kumar Shiv Ram Kishen aka Bholu, (Kapil Sharma) is delivering some funny lines in a two-hour long film, supposedly replete with situational comedy.

A man with a kind heart and an altruistic bent of mind, he ends up saving damsels in distress and in the bargain adds to the stress in his life.

He is forced to marry three women whose lives he has saved from difficult situations, yet, it is a fourth who he loves and wants to marry.

With his three wives labelled as head office, branch office, area office and girlfriend as inquiry office, he adroitly juggles his time with all four women and this forms the crux of the film.

However, Kapil Sharma, the hugely popular stand-up comedian, is a disappointment as an actor.

He merely delivers his lines sans any intonation or expression. His presence is like being on his TV show and not the character he essays in the film. He lacks conviction and energy, adds no nuance to his role and has a weak screen presence.

His drunken scene on the terrace on the eve of Karwa chauth, is particularly a let-down, with Kapil hamming in a very cliched tone devoid of emotions as is the climax scene, where he mouths emotional platitudes.

His three wives, Juhi (Manjari Phadnis), Simran (Simran Kaur Mundi) and Anjali (Sai Lokur) and girlfriend Deepika (Elli Avaram) add nothing to the film by way of performances. They are there for the glamour quotient and to hold the premise of the film together.

The humour comes in the form of witty dialogues and the situations, albeit oft seen and forced, with no logical links.

Perhaps the dialogue writer is the sole saviour, as he manages to write some genuinely funny lines that evoke some laughter. The dialogues like “Bhagwan aisa pati sabko de (God should give such a husband to every woman)” and “Kabhi kissi aurat ka dil mat dukhana aur kissi ka ghar mat todna (Never break the heart of a woman and never break someone’s home)” are used as leitmotifs.

The characters are flat and badly etched.

The lawyer friend Karan (Varun Sharma) and the servant (Jamie Lever) are the two actors who deliver and add weightage to their not-so-well written roles merely by the strength of their performances.

Arbaaz Khan as the hard-of-hearing brother-cum-don, Tiger bhai, ends up arousing laughter by default owing to the character he plays. Manoj Joshi as Deepika’s father is naturally brilliant.

Supriya Pathak and Sharat Saxena, as KSRK’s parents, have nothing much to do, but being veterans, essay their characters effortlessly.

The music adds no relief to the viewing experience and is equally forced and jarring with a deliberate Punjabi flavour to it, as if to suit Kapil Sharma’s personality.

At the end of the film, KSRK asks his friend Karan, “Batao mere saath kya hua? Tragedy ya comedy? (Tell me, what happened to me? Tragedy or comedy?)”

Perhaps that’s the question with which, the audience leaves the theatre too.