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Saturday, April 20, 2024
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BOLLYWOOD STRAIGHT
EDITOR'S PICK
Rating: **1/2
Let`s get one thing, er, straight. Homosexuality is finally out of the closet in
our films. Well, sort of. Last year`s naughty blockbuster "Dostana"
had two of our most popular leading men pretending to be gay.
Now "Straight" has Vinay Pathak believing he is gay.
There`s a slender space dividing pretence from belief, specially when it comes
to matters of human trait. Often what you pretend to be is what you eventually
end up being.
Fortunately for serio-comic hero Pinu Patel (Pathak) he`s not sexually attracted
to the persistently charming new stand-comedian Kamlesh (Anuj Chaudhri) whom
Pinu hires for his restaurant.
The scenes showing Kamlesh insinuating himself into Pinu`s life and place of
work are done with a dash of devilish bravado.
Within no time Pinu finds everyone eating not just off his tables, but also out
of Kamlesh`s hands.
A triangle of sorts comes up in a queer way when Pinu can`t figure out who he`s
more jealous, when the pretty new accountant Renu (Gul Panag) strikes up a
camaraderie with Kamlesh.
Confusion of sexuality is a theme yet in its infancy in our films. Director
Parvati Balagopalan keeps the going light-hearted and most of the time frothy
and amiable. There`s an endearing quality to the way these NRIs in London are
seen not in the predictable roles of migrant misfits, but grappling with more
personal problems without taking themselves too seriously.
Seriously, being funny about sexual preferences doesn`t come easily to our
cinema. "Straight" just about manages it with dignity and charm. The
triangular relationship among Pinu, Renu and Kamlesh is punctuated by bouts of
laughter, directed more at the way the characters deceive than conduct
themselves.
The camaraderie that grows between the male characters is specially likable. Not
just Pinu and Kamlesh, but Pinu and his London-born brother Rajat (Sid Makkar)
who finally turns out to be what Pinu suspected himself of being.
Through Rajat some groovy rock numbers (Sagar Desai) make their way into the
plot to add to the fair casual-fun quotient.
It`s not always that we see a woman director comprehending male bonding without
prejudice.
Arranged marriages and unarranged alliances all come under satirical scrutiny
under Parvati`s vigilant and vivacious camera range. She gets to the point
straight most of the way, thanks to the performances.
While Vinay Pathak brings a characteristic candour and confusion to his
character`s personality, Anuj Chaudhri as the endearing intruder Kamlesh plays
the character sincerely and honestly. Gul Panag is, as usual, very
camera-friendly.
What really works for this film is the uncluttered clean and crisp narrative
with London providing a subtly sensuous backdrop to characters who are anything
but subtle or sensuous.
IDream Production brings this modern day Rom Com in March directed by Parvati Balagopalan (dir. Rules-Pyar Ka Super hit formula ) and stars Vinay Pathak, Gul Panag, Anju Choudhary, Sid Makkar, Achal Sachdev, DAmandeep Singh Baggam, Ketki Dave, Rasik Dave.
The story is a hilarious take on confused sexuality of the central character Pine Patel, payed absolutely to the galleries by Vinay Pathak. Straight picks up from where Dostana left and weaves a light hearted comic tale around a motley group of Gujarati NRIs in London
In the midest of central London, a successful Indian resturant called `Gaylord` is run by a Londoner of Indian origin called Pinu. Pinu suffers from much insecurity, his chief qualm in life is that he is a virgin and has never experienced intimacy with a woman as he is very shy and introverted. His closest friend and ally is his foster brother Rajat, whose personality is stark opposite to his own. Rajat has an air of casual, confidence about him and is a lead singer of rock band. Rajat is very fond of pinu, though is often a source of annoyance to him as he finds really funny.
One day, a young Indian fellow called Kamlesh comes to his restaurant and asks for a job as a stand up comedian. On the same day, he hires a new cashier - Renu, a young, artist from India, has a passion for creating caricatures and aspires to be a professional cartoonist some day.Life changes dramaticaly for Pinu as Gaylord begins to transform... Renu works on the look of the place, makes cheerful caricatures for customers while Kamelesh a fabulous cook, has all the customers in splits with his hilarious standup act. Soon things change for the better as the business peaks with the new comdy routine, the delectable food and chic look.
All seems to be going well, when suddenly a string of unexpected events leaves Pinu is a tizzy. He walks away from the restaurant enveloped in a daze, suddenly he has a new fear- he might be gay! Pinu seeks refuge in Rajat`s advice which is quite simply - screw a woman!
On mission now, Pinu goes on a rampage seeking available women for a sexual rendezvous. However, it leads to him suffering another string of comic situations, with each act resulting in a goof up scenario.
Straight! is a funny tale about Pinu, who lokks for love amongst all the confusion in his life to `come out` as straight and find himself a love story.
