JOIN USMovie Review-Bol Bachchan:Old wine in new, brittle bottle
Hindi (U/A)
Cast: Ajay Devgn, Abhishek Bachchan, Asin, Prachi Desai
Director: Rohit Shetty
Rohit Shetty loves Hrishikesh Mukherjee. One fine day, he decides he should let the whole world know too. So he puts old Golmaal in new bottle. Gross! No fizz too.
Shetty’s heroes (Ajay Devgn and Abhishek Bachchan) aren’t a patch on that classic Utpal Dutt-Amol Palekar pair. Mukherjee’s light, effortless comedy of 1979 is reduced to some screeches and contorted faces, and passed off as humour.
Amitabh Bachchan makes an appearance in the title song, only to announce that he is not in the movie. Anyway, he doesn’t miss much.
Abhishek and sister Asin lose their fortune to a family dispute and head straight to a village where wrestler-cum-good Samaritan Devgn offers Abhishek a job after a white lie. Now, Devgn can’t stand dishonesty. But Abhishek must keep his job. More lies follow, with more fictitious characters popping up at regular intervals.
So you have Abhishek’s “twin” making a gender-bender entry as a Kathak teacher. Then there Archana Puransingh oscillating between a maa and a nautanki artiste.
All this while, Devgn happily assaults English, with his killer glossary and grammar. Sample these: Necessity is the mother of Discovery channel; honesty is the best mutual policy, pest control yourself...
Asin and Prachi Desai (Devgn’s sister) remain showpieces, fluttering eyelashes and dupattas.
Bol Bachchan has its moments (mostly offered by Abhishek’s Kathak do) but as an ode to Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s craft, it stinks.