Ghanchakkar

Rating : 5/10
Release Date : 28th June, 2013
Time : 140 minutes Director : Rajkumar Gupta; Writers : Parvez Sheikh, Rajkumar Gupta; Music : Amit Trivedi
Starring : Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan, Rajesh Sharma, Namit Das

There is so much going right for this film that unfortunately, the stuff that doesn’t work causes intense disappointment. For a change an interesting idea (Emraan Hashmi does a bank job with Rajesh Sharma and Namit, stashes the cash, but then has an accident and has now forgotten where) is combined with well-etched, interesting characters (the polite Rajesh Sharma, the aggressive, ‘Chotta Chetan’ carrying, tharki Namit, and the Punjabi, ‘if you’ve got it, flaunt it’ Vidya) and very good actors. But unfortunately the story runs out of legs shortly into the second half and the end is a bit lame and fizzles out like an old firecracker

The first half jokes are excellent, quirky – whether it is Vidya innocently asking when she should call the carpenter or the masks used during the robbery or the several conversations at the dining table about salt, pickle or fried rice or the ‘conference room’ used by Rajesh and Namit or even Vidya’s dress sense, inspired by the most elite women magazines – it flows easily and naturally.

The second half unfortunately just has more of Emraan being unable to remember, some more wild goose chases, a few red herrings etc. And then there is more of the same. And then some more. Before the climax finally kicks in. And completely deflates you. It tries to be cool (struggling to describe it without giving it away) but only ends up being a bit ridiculous

As an aside, had guessed where the bag was shortly after the interval…also dreamt up a few alternate endings each better than the one in the film…a bit sad that another film got afflicted by the curse of the inferior (& lengthy) second half, wish they had got it right…