Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania

Movie Review by Meena Yeggina
Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania
Yet another youth oriented flippant movie from Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions

Cast: Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Ashutosh Rana and Siddharth Shukla Director: Shashank Khaitan

Dharma Productions’ Humpty Sharma ki dulhania is supposed to be either inspired or remade from the most memorable love stories of all times Dilwale Dulhania Lejeayenge, directed by Aditya Chopra and produced by Yash Raj Films. A cult love story of sorts DDLJ had ever charming, classy, Shah Rukh Khan romancing the dusky beauty Kajol.

To even assume that HSKD could come close to the caliber of DDLJ is unimaginable. A Govinda styled Varun Dhawan cannot be compared to Shah Rukh Khan and neither can lehenga crazy, beer quaffing Kavya Singh (Alia Bhat) to an intelligent, book reading, apprehensive Simran (Kajol).

Kajol and Shah Rukh’s DDLJ is a classy, well-directed venture with melodious music and heart-warming romance without compromising on any Indian sentiments.

All HSKD achieved to convey after 20 years as remake of DDLJ in the name of progress is a frivolous, bed-romping would-be bride who is after a 4 lakh Kareena Kapoor styled lehenga for her wedding in return to her accepting the groom from the US in arranged marriage and a featherbrained hero who is after bedding a betrothed girl.

Frankly, I find Karan Johar extremely flighty as a producer/director. He is a commercial producer with zero morals and tastes. His target audience is the young and vulnerable middle class youth who love to see a useless hero falling in love with a pretty and rich girl who reciprocates and ditches an eligible NRI or rich Indian to marry him! Yeah, right! In your dreams!

And to even have the guts to equate Dhawan to SRK! The charm, the looks, the performance and dignity (in spite of his flunking in his exams in the film) SRK displays is nowhere close to the character of Dhawan’s. He neither has the looks nor the charm.

Coming to the vapid and oft-repeated story, a rich pretty Punjabi (that reminds me why can’t Karan Johar just produce films in Punjabi instead of in Hindi which are so much dripping in Punjabi flavor?) girl is all set to marry an eligible NRI. Her father (Ashutosh Rana) is against love as his older daughter fails in it and is a divorcee. Alia Bhat has no problems with her arranged marriage except that she has one condition: An expensive lehenga (costlier than her cousin’s)! For that purpose she wants to go to Delhi and earn money on her own to get the dress, IN A MONTH! In one month an unskilled young girl is supposed to earn 4 to 5 lakh rupees? I mean doing what may I know? I am flabbergasted as a mother with this shallow premise.

She comes to live with her uncle whose daughter is also getting married and whose ex boyfriend is blackmailing her with a sex video he shot secretly. Alia meets Varun who in turn is blackmailing her lecturer uncle to pass him in his exams! WOW!

Both meet and predictably like each other after a couple of flirtatious scenes followed by Varun saving her cousin from the blackmailer. In the next shot, Alia jumps into bed with him after a kiss which is so unexpected and extremely phoney without much emotions involved. And after the romp she very maturely tells him that she has to go back to her NRI fiancè because her father will never like Dhawan (who will?).

Poor NRI! He could not have imagined that his bride to be is having so much fun just a few weeks before the wedding!

The rest of the story is equally anticipated. Varun goes to Alia’s village/town whatever, stays there with a challenge from Alia’s father (Ashutosh) that if he can find one single fault in the NRI groom (Siddharth) he can marry Alia!

Why any father would be so stupid, I can’t imagine.

In spite of failing in the challenge, the movie ends with the bride’s father uttering the iconic words from DDLJ “ja, jeele apni zindagi,” to Varun offering him his daughter. Not convincing at all.

I would like to think that educated young women this age and time, after seeing the world and watching the news, would be smarter, wiser, mature and understand the true meaning of life, love and marriage. You would assume she would be cautious in a big city. But Alia Bhat’s character compared to DDLJ’s heroine Kajol, is extremely immature and comes across as shallow and flighty. Of course Varun’s character is miles ahead of her in exhibiting birdbrains.

This movie has a betrothed young woman flirting, dating, hugging and dancing away the nights with Varun, who is a total stranger in the most dangerous city, Delhi.

It has a useless, uneducated, cheating and characterless hero who is after an engaged girl, ruthlessly.

Strangely it also has a rotten father (Varun’s) who allows his son, along with his two other male friends and a carton of beer bottles, spend a night with Alia Bhat in his bookstore!!!!!! I mean what the...?

DOES ANY RESPONSIBLE FATHER IN ANY COUNTRY ALLOW THIS? THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE MODERN?

As I was watching the movie, I was shocked to see that Alia lets herself spend the night alone with three boys DRUNK in a bookstore! Can any smart girl be so careless?

None of the cast comes close to the original DDLJ. Amrish Puri, the dadi, sister, mom, no one.

Siddharth Shukla is wasted and has no impact in the movie. It’s a wonder why he accepted this role.

Marriage at least is hoped in all cultures as a lifetime commitment. Karan Johar, may not understand this. But I hope he will be very very careful as a producer and stop churning out young love stories with oft-repeated brainless theme and questionable moral values!

Somehow the whole movie looks artificial and synthetic including Bhat’s chirpiness and Varun’s over enthusiasm. You don’t feel touched by their love story.

Music is overrated.

Grab an Ek Villain DVD instead!