The movie revolves around Laxmikant Kabadiya aka L.K (Anupam Kher) one of India’s wealthiest Industrialists who dies a sudden death after having sex with an aspiring starlet Kim (Rakhi Sawant) who is a “vishkanya”, any man who sleeps with her will die straight away. His rather colourful family includes his twin sister Prerna (Mahabanoo Mody Kotwal), his two sons Ranjeet (Bobby Parvez) and Sameer (Mukesh Tiwari) and their wives Shruti (Mannat Kaur) and Anju (Mona Ambegaonkar) as well as their daughters and sons who all have their greedy eyes on the money. However on the advice of the family guru Vidyut Baba (Om Puri) they decide to keep L.K alive for a few more days because if the world finds out that L.K is really dead then the shares of his company won’t be sold. However keeping a famous figure like L.K alive in the public and snooping media’s eyes isn’t all that easy. To complicate matters further there is the greedy house servant (Paresh Rawal), the minister’s henchman (Murali Sharma) a dalal of dead bodies (Ranvir Shourie) as well as Kim who is still after her big break. What happens next?
The story by Raju Saigal on paper may sound like it’s been inspired from WEEKEND AT BERNIES (which was recently remade as NEHLLE PE DEHLLA) however let me assure you it’s completely different in every way. Apart from the fact the basic premise of the movie is the same, the entire story is different, and has been quiet well written in my view. Keeping in mind this is supposed to be a “black comedy” Saigal has written the perfect scenario for the evil nature of mankind to reveal itself. Essentially the story is a series of gags which unfold one after the other due to the circumstances that arise after L.K’s death, and trust me this is a “no holds barred” type of movie. Anand Sivakumaran’s screenplay is apt for the type of film this is. The movie unfolds at a brisk pace, and there’s always something “amusing” happening on-screen which keeps the viewers engaged, and quiet often in splits.
In the other of another director, a story like this would’ve just ended up being another B-grade comedy-fest; however Rahul Rawail has carefully designed this movie with two primary motives, 1) To shock the viewers senseless, and 2) To raise some laughs. This is the kind of comedy you would most definitely feel thoroughly uncomfortable watching with the family, and most probably give your grandparents a heart-attack right there on the spot. Those who thrive of Karan Johar’s world of artificial junk and Sooraj Barjatya’s sugar-coated ideals should steer well away as the movie is likely to grossly offend.
Picture this, Om Puri plays a devout Hindu pandit with his potbelly sticking right out, who is secretly bisexual and goes by the pet-name Vidya which only his lover Mukesh Tiwari knows about. When no-ones watching they kiss and canoodle while HUM TUM EK KAMARE MEIN BANDH HO plays in the background. Om also prays to god quiet often asking “maa mujhe shakti de, mein bahut thak gaya hu” as he has to not only please his lover, but also his over-weight wife. Want more?
It then turns out that Mukesh Tiwari’s son wasn’t produced by him (remember he swings the other way) but infact by his own father? Confused, well Anupam Kher slept with his son’s wife, which makes Mukesh Tiwari’s son his own brother? The kid in the movie explains it a lot better.
Prem Chopra tries to molest Rakhi to which Rakhi replies “main tujhe maroongi”, to which an excited Prem Chopra pulls down his pants and bends over urging her to spank him. A street-smart beggar sells his own father’s dead body for 2 lakhs, only to have a “brainwave” of a business idea of selling dead bodies to people including grave robbing, he even asks random old people on the bus “aap ko koi beemari hai”?
A girl practices her “item number” in front of a dead body who happens to be her grandfather in the most casual manner while the song “husn ke…lakhon rang” plays in the background.
Men taking turns at holding each others penises while in the urinal? Or my favourite, which is the zany, whacky, crazy and outrageous title track where the entire crew laugh, dance and have a ball while singing “buddha marr gaya, buddha marr gaya” around Anupam Kher’s dead body.
Folks, I’m not kidding you, this is truly a shocking movie, and I think most of the critics who saw this movie missed the point entirely (with the exception of Taran Adarsh and Joginder Tuteja) and got lost along the way as they quickly dismissed this as “disgusting” and yes, the movie is quiet disgusting in parts. It’s the type of comedy you feel bad laughing at, but after a point (depending on how sick your sense of humour is) you burst out laughing and don’t stop. Rahul Rawail’s direction here is great if you ask me, his aim was to make a shocking black comedy and for the most he succeeds. At times the movie starts heading over to the B-grade comedy territory, though only temporarily as it comes right rather fast. Rawail shows flashes of brilliance in parts and his command over the concept of a “black comedy” is indeed applaud-worthy. There are times the satirical tone of the movie reminded me of not only KHOSLA KA GHOSLA but also Madhur Bhandarkar’s expose cinema. Note the sequence where there is a funeral happening and everyone is too busy worrying about money and shares, the difference being Bhandarkar’s cinema isn’t comedy and this is. There is another wonderful sequence which shows the exploitative side of the Media, as the dead body of Anupam Kher is in the funeral parlour visiting his brother (he’s not dead in the worlds eye) and a news reporter is secretly hiding doing an “exclusive” with comments like “L.K Saab bahut hi tooth chuke hai, in dono bhaiyon ka pyaar itna ghehra hai ke L.K saab rob hi nahin paa rahe”. The sad thing is that the movie had potential to be so much more had more attention been paid to the script. Sequences seem like they have been forced in to the proceedings, and as mentioned earlier the movie at times starts heading over to the B-grade comedy zone, but that aside, Rahul Rawail knows what he is doing, and manages to certainly more than a few laughs which is not something I expected. It’s hard to believe the same guy directed ARJUN and DACAIT though…
The dialogues in the movie are apt within the context, saucy, offensive, outrageous and obscene as well as being dipped in sarcasm. The pleasure of the dialogues is that they’re so outlandish yet the actors deliver them with such conviction.
It’s a rather odd, sick, twisted and demented(sounds much like the movie) pleasure in seeing the respected “seniors” of our industry letting absolutely loose and going crazy in a film like this, unexpected yet thoroughly amusing.
Om Puri is absolutely fantastic here. The man knows how to take a joke, and plays the part with relish. This no doubt requires an actor who is extremely confident to be able to pull off something like this with such conviction, and Puri’s finer nuances here are just shining. His body language, delivery, dialogues and facials are hilarious. Just witness the “romantic” scenes with Mukesh Tiwari, Puri gives it all he’s got and isn’t afraid to experiment(no pun intended) by any means. People who’ve got the Puri from ARDH-SATYA and DROH-KAAL firmly etched in their minds will be in for a true shock.
Mukesh Tiwari too shines. I’ve always found Tiwari a thoroughly underrated actor. His debut in Raj Kumar Santoshi’s CHINAGATE was fantastic, and he delivered some worthy performances in films like REFUGEE, GANGAJAL, APAHARAN etc however these were all in either negative or serious roles. Here in a comedy he again proves that he is a “jack-of-all-trades” and pulls off the part with extreme conviction. Not once does he look uncomfortable at the crazy antics he’s required to perform.
Paresh Rawal is given quiet a straight-forward role compared to the other cast members, and this is a tailor-made role for Rawal who shines at a character who he slips in to with effortless ease.
Ranvir Shourie is EXCELLENT. Here is an actor who simply shines every time and this is no different, he plays his part with utmost conviction, and his comic timing is flawless to say the least as well as his delivery.
Rakhi Sawant is well…Rakhi Sawant. She can’t act whether her life depended on it, exhibits her breasts at every occasion she gets and keeps the focussed where it’s meant to belong. She plays an aspiring actress here who is willing to sleep to the top….art imitating life Miss Sawant?
Vinay Patthak is hardly there in a short cameo playing a sleazy doctor. Prem Chopra seems to be in his own world, and quiet often doesn’t fit in quiet well as he mouths the line “Prem naam hai mera” over and over again.
Mahabanoo Mody Kotwal, Mona Ambegaonkar, Murali Sharma and Bobby Parvez all play their parts well.
Bappi Lahiri’s title track is strictly OK, though the zany picturisation works well. The usage of popular songs only works sometimes. The CHAK DE PHATTEY track from KHOSLA KA GHOSLA appears forced, while others like BEEDI and the songs from the medley work rather well.
Technically the movie is below average. Suhass Gujrathi’s camerawork is mixed, often coming across as a low budget venture. Rahul Rawail’s editing could’ve been tighter here as some sequences could’ve been easily chopped.
All up BUDDHA MARR GAYA is a shocker, most definitely not everyone’s cup of tea, however I do feel the movie is one that warrants one watch just for the “shock” value, some well enacted performances and hilarious jokes….yes what can I say, I’m a sicko!
Final Rating: * * *
