Jhootha Hi Sahi Review

'Jhootha Hi Sahi' is the kind of film where a constant smile on one's face is guaranteed for those two and a half hours. Credit for that goes to two men - Abbas Tyrewala and John Abraham. One did have certain expectations from Abbas, especially after 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Naa'. Here too he doesn't disappoint as he embellishes the proceedings with enough sweet and smile inducing moments that never fail to entertain.

Even otherwise, there is always a feel good factor that one can sense with every 10 minutes bringing on something to attract a viewer's attention. This is where John Abraham comes into picture as he delivers yet another career enhancing performance after 'New York' and 'Dostana'. It is amazing to see how he has transformed his entire body language, mannerisms and dialogue delivery for this film.

Though it seemed like a publicity gimmick to begin with, the fact is that one indeed forgets the star John Abraham while watching the film but instead falls in love with Sid who is forced to mouth some innocent lies due to the circumstances. Watch out for the scene in the book shop where John meets Pakhi for the first time, majority of scenes where John interacts with his bunch of friends (headed by Raghu), the one where John ends up picking up porn DVDs from Pakhi's shop and especially that riotous scene where John's ex-girlfriend (Mansi Scott) is termed as Raghu's girlfriend.

Meanwhile, in addition to the John & Pakhi story where the former is required to hold on a twin persona - one who is a geek working in a book store and another who is a stranger on a friendship helpline - there are quite a few other supporting stories in play as well. While some work (Raghu-Mansi), a few just pass muster. Love story between Raghu's sister and her Japanese suitor becomes repetitive after a point which results in audience loosing his attention. Also, an episode involving John's gay friend isn't fully explored. A tangential story about Pakhi and Madhavan (he too is there in a special appearance) is fine even though it does carry a strong sense of deja vu while reminding of a similar sub plot involving Genelia D'Souza and her fiance in 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Naa'.

Still, what works in favour of 'Jhootha Hi Sahi' is that at the core of it, it stays on to be a young film with no space for over sentimentality or drama. Everything remains constant and stable right through the film's narrative though there are brief portions at the beginning of the film's second half where you do wish that the proceedings could have been faster. Also, the pre-climax and climax are pretty long drawn that adds on to impatience. Music by A.R. Rahman is an interruption here though and while a couple of songs do sound good audio wise, the effect is not accentuated when seen with visuals.

All of this means that 'Jhootha Hi Sahi' has a select audience base for itself that it is required to explore. While youth can be expected to lap it up with glee, the older generation won't really be enthused to know more about orgasms that last for 30 minutes, phone sex, a girl looking at a best friend relationship with her ex, gay relationships and man sleeping with his best friend's ex-girlfriend.

The good though part about 'Jhootha Hi Sahi' is that you get exactly what you had expected from it in the first place. The film never looked like a breezy entertainer in the offing that moved ahead at break neck speed. Instead, it appeared to be a light hearted entertainer which would have a stable 'sur' to it without many ups and downs. The talkie promos had pretty much established the mood and the flavour of the film and one knew that instead of stepping into a ha-ha land or something which is overtly mushy, a walk into 'Jhootha Hi Sahi' would stay on to be something which is realistic and accessible.

Rating: ***