Shakal Pe Mat Ja Review

Since you step into 'Shakal Pe Mat Jaa' with zero expectations, the final outcome turns out to be bearable at the least with quite a few moments thrown here and there that end up making this film a time pass affair. Also, what makes you feel that 'Shakal Pe Mat Jaa' can be given a chance are some funny dialogues as well as background score that come together to create momentary impact at the least. If you are planning to watch it, do it with a bunch of friends and remember not to take anything about the film or in it seriously.

Shubh plays a 20 year old youngster who is out to make an amateur documentary on loopholes in Indian security and is supported by his younger brother (Pratik), an NRI friend (Chitrak) and another youngster with a rockstar persona (Harsh). However when the quartet is suspected as terrorists at an airport all hell breaks loose. While the police (Raghuveer Yadav) and ATS (Saurabh Shukla) are still undecided about their true status, what makes the matters worse is the arrival of some real terrorists at the airport.

What contributes most to the laughter though is not Shubh himself but veterans Saurabh Shukla and Raghuveer Yadav. Saurabh has a unique way of bringing humour on screen and he does that successfully once again every time he appears on screen. Also, Raghuveer Yadav is plain natural too as a frustrated senior cop who probably has just a few years remaining for his retirement and would rather be at home than get embroiled in the entire terror attack.

Even friends contribute to a few occasional jokes with Chitrak bringing on some laughs with his fascination of porn. However repeated scenes centred on him and flatulence leave a bad taste in the mouth. Harsh is a little awkward in the first half but gets quite some focus on himself in the second half. On the other hand child artist Pratik is plain irritating and over acts to the hilt. Zakir Hussain as the wannabe Osama is good though. However inclusion of Shubh's girlfriend, played by Umang Jain, hardly contributes to the storyline while volte face that Aamna Shariff's character does is impossible to digest.

While the film works well in the middle portions, especially once Saurabh Shukla enters on the scene right till the point where it is finally established that terrorists have a bomb kept in a red bag, it's the portions at the beginning and towards the end that don't really work. The entire series of events where the four friends are captured and the initial investigation makes one wonder what was the big deal about the quartet coming up with clear details. Same holds good for the last 20 minutes of the film which gets into the Priyadarshan zone, hence reminding one of his films where characters run helter-skelter in the climax.

Shubh, who has also directed the film, makes his intentions very clear about 'Shakal Pe Mat Jaa'. He sets it up as a spoof which means none of the characters are supposed to be taken seriously regardless of whether they are on the right or wrong side of law.

No, this one doesn't turn out to be another 'Hot Shots' or 'Pink Panther' but the feel of the narrative here is aimed at being zany. Does it turn out to be a successful attempt? Well, not in entirety but given the fact that this was always meant to be an amateur take at making a film, 'Shakal Pe Mat Jaa' does make you smile and at places even laugh out loud.

Rating: **