`Hey Baby' the high budget bollywood guffaw is here hoping to `triple' Fox Star, Pooja Films and director Sajid Khan's fortune with a `Housefull' board outside theatres.
This brain basher that starts with a note declaring the movie a tribute to Kishore Kumar, Jim Carrey and Peter Sellers. (God Kishore da must be hoodling in pain from the heavens). Seriously they should have also added Sajid Khan, the director, in the tribute to make way for a rescue as things have gone agonizingly wrong.
Sadly (no pun intended) `Humshakals' though features some committed performance from Riteish Deshmukh and Ram Kapoor, the movie, baring the `Himmatwala' dig, is a audacious mismatch of a loud brain basher and schmaltz resulting in more head shaking and just a couple of rib tickling moments for the audience.
If you are still interested in knowing what is the story of `Humshakals' all about (those who have already decided to watch it, are helping the makers' hundred crore dreams of this fifty crore project come true.. Best wishes) for the rest, this screenplay by Robin Bhatt, Sajid Khan and Akarsh Khurana is a test to find out when was it written - after eating cocaine paratha or vodka paratha.
So we have a successful business tycoon Ashok Singhania (Saif Ali Khan) but a pathetic stand-up comic who just cannot make anyone laugh. In one of the scenes a woman says "My three-year-old niece cracks better jokes than this." (How true) His best pal from childhood Kumar (Riteish Deshmukh) is always there with him even accompanies him during his board meetings (How convenient. Yup). But folks, there is a wicked fork in the Singhania's anda (read dhanda - business) to be toast by Mama KANS (Kunwar Amar Nath Singh played by Ram Kapoor).
Ashok's father played by Akash Khurana is in coma and the wicked Mama wants to seize the business from Ashok and the only way he can do this is by declaring Ashok as mentally unstable.
So Ashok and his friend Kumar land up in mental asylum after turned into dogs by consuming a MAD - Mind Altering Drug made by Mamaji's ally a scientist. Another mental asylum just besides the one Ashok and Kumar are admitted has another Jodi Ashok and Kumar (name and look are same but they lack maturity in their brain we are told).
Just when Mamaji is exposed in front of Ashok, Mamaji's lookalike `sneezes' in, this man suffers from some Stage-3 OCD, where a sneeze could lead to life-threatening situations. But he can be calmed down by offering him a lollipop. Yippe yippee yeah..!!!
The confusion starts without much glee and to make it more audacious, the third lookalikes are introduced for a climax and a song featuring a horrible Saif Ali Khan as a cross-dressed male wooing Ritesh Deshmukh - with such a strong pheromones that helps "women" attract men - so strong to even beat chloroforms threatens the audience of losing consciousness as the plot has already lost its hope. Hosh.. hope.. where are you.??
And that's not all a plastic surgery on gays and hold your breath... a Prince Charles lookalike yelling `Teecha Maila' ( a Marathi slang). That's Sajid Khan and his humour - who was enjoyable and rib tickling during `Housefull' days. Post `Himmatwala' it's all gadbad ghotala... Maar Daala.. Aiila.. maar daala.
Saif Ali Khan as the business tycoon is convincing to the core but as the other two the same cannot be said. Though he tries hard.
Best act comes from Ritesh convincing in all the three roles. Followed by Ram Kapoor.
The ladies Bipasha, Tamanna, Esha are just pretty baby dolls. Himesh Reshammiya's music is a plus.
Conclusion : `Humshakals' is a definite head shaker for the reason. It's a movie that makes the audience turn into spectators of a lawn tennis match, shaking heads every time. Ironically, probably this time the audience are shaking heads more for Sajid Khan's lost of touch in his own comfort zone resulting in unwanted frown from this touted rib ticking bone.
Tickle yourself instead.
Rating **
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