A remake of the South Indian hit PUNJABI HOUSE the film revolves around Jeetu(Shahid Kapoor) who is in a lot of debt in his small town. His father -a retired school teacher(Anupam Kher) and his doting fiancee(Sushma Reddy) are constantly made to suffer the consequences of Jeetus failed businesses and debts.
Jeetu tries to commit suicide so that all debts will be paid with the insurance money that comes from hit death and his family can move on but even that fails. After attempting to drown himself in the water Jeetu is saved by two fishermen Gundya(Paresh Rawal) and Bandya(Rajpal Yadav) and lands in Kolkotta.
Gundya owes a lot of money to a a shrewd Gujrati businessman Prabhat Singh(Om Puri). Unable to pay the bill Gundya decides to keep Jeetu and Bandya at Prabhat Singhs palace as slaves until he can get together the money he owes Prabhat.
Jeetu all this time pretends to be deaf and dumb as this is an easy way out for him and doesn't have to explain himself.
Prabhat Singhs niece Shruti(Kareena Kapoor) is also mute and her protective elder brother Mangal(Suniel Shetty) is on the lookout for a boy who will love Shruti for who she is and not just their money.
Complications arise when Shrutis cousin Meenakshi(Neha Dhupia) finds out that Jeetu isn't actually deaf and dumb. From here on begins a comedy of errors which lands Jeetu in a "mandap" marrying Shruti. But what happens when his family and fiancee finds out that he is actually alive?Who does Jeetu end up marrying? CHUP CHUP KE provides the answers.
Priyadarshans story has been well written and there is still a certain "south" hangover to the movie although the movies entire setting is in Kolkotta and the family that the movie revolves around is Gujrati. The first half is brilliantly written and keeps the viewer laughing until there is tears in the viewers eyes. The second half too has its fair share of moments however the momentum and mood created in the first half is definetly lost. An overdose of badly placed songs as well as some overlong sequences stick out like a sore thumb here. The pacing of the movie too becomes uneven and tighter writing was the need of the hour. The climax of the movie too is overdone-and unlike Priyadarshans usual farcial climax sequences(witness HULCHUL or MAAL A MAAL WEEKLY) this is more emotion/drama based.
As a director there is no doubt that Priyadarshan is a accomplished film maker who knows how to make an entertaining film that keeps the viewer completely entertained and when the viewer leaves the theatre he comes out saying PAISA VASOOL! In that regard CHUP CHUP KE is no different as the first half of the movie is just downright HILARIOUS! I was laughing NON-STOP right from Paresh and Rajpals entrance to Interval point. The film moves at a breakneck pace completely involving the viewer in the antics of the principal three actors. Priyadarshan is a comedy king and there is no 2 ways about it. I would even go as far as to say that the first half of CHUP CHUP KE is Priyadarshans finest moments in comedy since his HERA PHERI(see to believe)! The second half concentrates more on the dramatic and emotional based moments and thats where the movie falters in a huge way at times. The romance between Shahid and Kareena unfolds too fast and is hard to digest. There are a number of brilliant songs in the second half which are badly paced and seem forced into the narrative despite being superbly picturised. The drama is on the border of being melodrama at times and one feels that Priyadarshan has taken himself too seriously here. CHUP CHUP KE in a lot of ways is similar to his earlier film HULCHUL-love amongst a whole lot of confusion, hilarious characters and extremely funny comedy merged in with dramatic and emotional moments in a family based drama. However this setup worked better in HULCHUL than it did in CHUP CHUP KE(as a overall package) however if its a laugh you're after than CHUP CHUP KE doesn't disappoint as you will be bowled over howling in the first half of the movie!
In terms of performances the movie belongs to the three principal actors..
1) Rajpal Yadav! The actor has gone on record to say that this is his best performance aside from MMDBCH and MMPAW and this is true! Rajpal of late has been regulated to a number of sideline comic roles which are funny-but none that have really offered him anything to sink his teeth into(MAINE PYAAR KYUN KIYA, GARAM MASALA, SHAADI SE PEHLE). The last time the actor bought the house down like this was in WAQT where he even stole the show from Amitabh Bachchan and here too Rajpal steals the movie with a absolutely delightful, zany, energetic, whacky and completely LOVABLE comic performance. Unlike his subdued performance in WAQT-Rajpal LETS LOOSE here without completely overdoing it. His facial expressions(from cute to angry to confused to scared to happy), his body language right down to his get-up and even the smallest nuances just crack the viewer up. The mere sight of Rajpal evokes laughter -and even when he is not uttering any lines or is in the background he is still doing something which catches the viewers eye and evokes laughter.
2) Shahid Kapoor:The actor to date has given some commendable performances but for the most has been known as a Shahrukh Khan clone. This (alongside SHIKHAR) can be classed as Shahids finest performance to date. He acts confidently, has charm and screen presence as well. Above all he manages to hold his own against Paresh and Rajpal in their own forte and leaves his own mark(NOT a easy feat). His comic timing is superb and dancing is wicked as always.
3) Paresh Rawal. A Priyadarshan film always has a special place for Paresh Rawal. Right from films like KABHI NAA KABHI to HERA PHERI to GARAM MASALA to MAAL A MAAL WEEKLY and now CHUP CHUP KE-no Priyadarshan film is complete without Paresh no matter how small of big the role is. Once again Paresh changes his look completely to hilarious affect and plays his part efficiently as ever. Pareshs chemistry with Rajpal is what MAKES the first half(and you can say a lot of the movie as well). His timing is brilliant as ever and his delivery is still on fire. The actor just rocks...once again. He is missing for most of the second half though which is a pity.
There are a number of scenes which completely bowl the viewer over with laughter and this incldues..
1) Rajpal and Paresh in hospital trying to talk in sign language to Shahid 2) The wrestling match with Rajpal, Paresh at Oms house 3) All the numerous sequences involving Rajpal doing the chores around the house with Shahid.
At this stage I would also like to acknowledge Neeraj Vohra who does an OUTSTANDING job with the dialogues. No comedy film can work without dialogues no matter how great the actors are(SHAADI SE PEHLE, PYAARE MOHAN, SHAADI NO.1 to name a few) and CHUP CHUP KE boasts of some of the wittiest and funniest lines I've heard. Specially those uttered by the three leads above! Interestingly enough Vohra directs the sequel to Priyadarshans HERA PHERI this week which too has Paresh Rawal, Suniel Shetty, and Rajpal Yadav as well as Akshay Kumar!
The rest of the supporting cast are apt in their roles but surprisingly the female leads disappoint.
Kareena Kapoor is a disappointment in her part and one feels her character hasn't been fleshed out properly. She was much more effective in HULCHUL. Her appearence is just OK here although they maybe a couple in "real" life I still see no chemistry between Shahid and Kareena at all.
Neha Dhupia-what is she doing here in a inconsequential role? I think this girl has talent as well as looks and needs to be more selective in her roles. She plays her part well but isn't given enough footage.
Sushma Reddy who made her debut in CHOCOLATE(remember the Julia Roberts look alike?) disappoints in her part. Here she plays a character which is totally contrasting from her first movie but she fails to make an impression. She needs to take more care of her looks/makeup/hair as well as improve on her emoting.
Om Puri is good in his part-however his role isn't as great as it was in the recent MAAL A MAAL WEEKLY!
Suniel Shetty plays the older brother(yet AGAIN) and is efficient. This is the kind of role Suniel can play with his eyes closed and is in fact an EXACT replica of what he already played in Priyadarshans HULCHUL.
The film also features an array of Priyadarshan regulars from Asrani, Shakti Kapoor, Manoj Joshi, as well as Anupam Kher who all play their parts efficiently.
The music by Himmesh Reshammiya is superb and two songs in particular leave a lasting impresion-GHOOMAR and DIL VICH LAGYA. One just wishes they were better placed!
Technically the film is good. Tirrus cinematography is up to the mark and Sabu Cyrils artwork is well done.
All up where does that leave CHUP CHUP KE? Well the first half is EXTREMELY FUNNY and complete Paisa Vasool while the second half disappointments. The film is definitely worth a dekkho but whether you watch the movie in theatre or on DVD depends on how big a fan are you of the Priyan/Paresh/Rajpal comedies.
Final Rating: * * * ½
