Romantic films have always been the favourite genre of Bollywood. In fact almost every Bollywood film has a plot or a subplot that dwells on romance. This week, we see the release of the film BEHEN HOGI TERI that promises to tell a rather unconventional romantic story in a comic way. But will the film work for the junta or will it like the countless other romantic comedies be lost among the multitude is what we analyse.
Starting off, the story of BEHEN HOGI TERI follows the life of Gattu (Rajkummar Rao) who faces a major crisis as he loves Binny (Shruti Haasan) who lives in their neighbourhood. However, since everyone advocates that the girls of the neighbourhood should be treated as their own sisters, Gattu is faced with a challenge to express his love for Binny. In fact, Gattu, who isn’t even considered as a potential groom for Binny, is constantly tasked with jobs that are usually assigned to the girl’s brother. Simultaneously, Binny who is rather mischievous is not totally committing to Gattu thus adding to the number of issues he faces. Will Gattu manage to overcome this issue and convince Binny and both the families that he truly loves her or will Gattu be relegated to playing Binny’s brother and assist in the search for her ideal groom… is what forms the rest of the film.
The plot of the film and the concept appear a bit different from the conventional romantic outings that we have seen so far. While the first half is enjoyable with the well timed comic gags that elicit a response from the audience, the second half is a huge downer and that is where the film falters. In fact, the second half of the film comes across as a haphazard series of events strung together to create an ill-fitting collage that does little to entertain. If that wasn’t all, Rajkumar Rao’s character Gattu comes across as too much of an underdog right from the start, sadly as the film progresses, contrary to rising up to the situation, his character seems to disintegrate further converting him into a desperate soul who fails to connect with the viewer. Also the entry of Gulshan Grover’s character seems rather forced fit. The manner in which Shruti Haasan, whose character is depicted as a firebrand, falls for Rajkumar in a jiffy, makes the plot difficult to digest.
Director Ajay Pannalal, who makes his cinematic debut with this film surely knows how to create comic moments but fails to narrate a strong story. Though certain scenes and sequences come across as well executed, there are others wherein his lack of experience in capturing the essence of the matter is very evident. If that wasn’t all, there are also parts of the film that come across as stretched and overtly lengthy, especially some that could have well been edited out. For instance, the sequence where Rajkumar and his friend interact with each other totally drunk is too long, uncalled for and boring.
, more than the director, the writers are to blame. The film could have been much better had the writers Vinit Vyas and Rajat Nonia developed a more interesting premise. In fact since the setting of the story is in a small town and had a scope to show the flavour and humour of small town India but the second half of the film falls flat due to poor writing.
Talking about performances, Rajkumar Rao who has proved his mettle as an actor does well in his given role as the love struck Gattu who finds himself in a dilemma. Shruti Haasan’s constant wallowing in the face of hardship and trails does little justice to her character. Despite this, the nakras and jhatkas she constantly displays, while giving Gattu a hard time adds to the comic element of the film making it a light hearted entertainer. Rajkumar and Shruti look good as friends but somehow there’s lack of chemistry between them as love birds. On the other hand, Herry Tangri as Bhura plays his part to perfection. Darshan Jariwala as Gattu’s father is good in his limited screen time, while Gautam Gulati is totally wasted and underutilized in the film. Ninad Kamath who plays Binny’s brother is typecast as the elder brother whose sole purpose is to support the family and ensure his sisters are married off to the best possible suitor. Though comic in parts, Kamath’s role becomes rather monotonous and regressive by the second half of the film. Gulshan Grover and Ranjeet don’t get to do much.
DoP Shamsher Singh does a decent job. However the film’s editor Deven Murudeshwar fails to make the film look seamless. He surely could’ve done a better job. Background score (Jam8, an initiative by Pritam, Yash Narvekar, R.D.Burman, Rishi Rich, and Amjad Nadeem) is average. Though most of the tracks in the film are situational tracks that play in the background, the tracks ‘Jai Ma’ and ‘Jaanu’ (recreated version of ‘Jaanu Meri Jaan’) stand out. However, while the situational tracks blend well with the film, they are sadly not enough to infuse life and direction into an otherwise chaotic plotline.
On the whole, though BEHEN HOGI TERI has an interesting premise, the film disappoints due to a weak script. At the box office, the film will have to depend on good word of mouth to post decent numbers.
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