Zila Ghaziabad

I walked into Zila Ghaziabad with an absolutely clear mind.  I had no doubts or apprehensions that I was going to watch a 2^nd grade or maybe even a 3^rd grade “inspiration” of a “great” franchise that is being run by Khan family.  Arre Salman Khan family re.  Not the other Khan/s.

It was quite obvious from the trailers that all Sanjay Dutt tried to do was emulate the great Khan.  Ergo Chulbul Pandey was replaced with Thakur Pritam Singh Chauhan (Sanjay Dutt).  I must say that the name PSC sounds immensely more powerful than Chulbul.  But that’s where it ends because Chauhanji cannot come close to Pandeyji’s seeti.  A whimper is all that you get. 

And so, there I was @ PVR Goregaon, with my seat belts fastened for a harrowing ride.  But whaddya know? The ride never started.  I waited for over 2.5 hours for the damn thing to take off somewhere.  But it just refused to do so.  There was a lot of movement on the screen with colours and sounds of all kinds, not one but 2 item numbers thrown in etc.  But nowhere remotely close to a take off.

Along the way, I picked up some stuff about the movie.  Something to do with a Chairman (Paresh Rawal) who uses a local goon Fauji (Arshad Warsi) for his political needs.  But there is a school Master Satbeer (Vivek Oberoi) who has the Chairman’s favour much to the disgust of the Chairman’s brother in law and Fauji. 

Someone attacks Fauji’s house and all good sense goes out of the window from everyone’s life.  Hell breaks loose.  Master is accused of doing it.  And then the combined blood bath of all Arnold Schwarzenegger movies falls short.  In each sequence that follows, someone is killing someone else or their crony.

Bad performances across the board from actors who are otherwise quite good in their own right.  Arshad Warsi in a negative role for the first time in his career struggles to get the act right.  You land up feeling pity for him and not hate as should be the case.  Vivek Oberoi is below par yet again. 

And Sanjay Dutt does himself no favour either.  This role can be called his most hilarious to date.  There is no competition at all.  The decision is unanimous.  And coming to the ladies I can totally understand the reasons for Charme Kaur, Shriya Saran and Geeta Basra doing this movie.  But Minissha Lamba & Divya Dutta.  Why????

Anand Kumar is a very common name in India and I think he should thank his parents for this name because I am quite certain that there are a few people (read producers) after his blood.  More so because of the 2+ hours of torture that he has put us through.  It will take a while for these people to find him.

The movie may do very well in Western UP for reasons best known to the public in that part of the world.  But for people who aren’t used to such crappy cinema, stay away.  2 on 10. 

Trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsvz1lrc_O0