Movie Review: Khosla Ka Ghosla

We went to see this movie yesterday at Roxy Cinema at Opera House. Not yet a multiplex, but catering to the crowd that treats movies like a proper outing, this theatre serves assorted chips, Krazy Korn, bhel/sevpuri, and popcorn. The show was supposed to be at 7:45 pm, but the doors only opened at that time. The small foyer outside the hall was crowded like a mela with people buying food, some of them going to stand in the open-air balcony.

I had heard the movie was a comedy, and was looking for such. Come on yaar, it was starring Anupam Kher, Boman Irani and Randeep Shourie, aaj ke comic geniuses! But while you come out smiling at the end, there's not much to make you smile during it unless you have an acute eye for the ridiculous in reality - the ironies of life - the father getting angry at his son during his laughter club session, the kids running to work when their father dies, the woman grumbling about teh cost of feeding eleven orphans etc.

It is basically about a middle class man K. K. Khosla of the 'service class' who has spent all his retirement money on a plot of land so he can build his dream home. He shows up to do the bhoomi poojan only to find out his land has been illegally taken over by evil builder K. Khurana (I swear the lighting makes him look like a wolf - DAMN good makeup!), and that he must once again BUY the land from him!!!! The first half shows them all getting entangled in red tape, plus all his family problems - a loser older son, an engineer younger son who wants to migrate to the US, his girlfriend, the quite cute but frequently annoying squeaky-voiced Tara Sharma. Seriously, my nerves were wracked by the interval. I dont think I can handle reality baba!!!!

After the interval the masti begins with a plot hatched to get the plot (hehe!) back. The movie shows beautifully the ethical issues involved, the synergy between the people, and the best part, the success of the scheme! Also another good part is that Chak de Phatte! bhangra song that plays randomly. Bur obviously its not a mainstream bollywood movie - no glamourous clothes or item numbers or anything extraneous, but still really cute! That Parvin Dabas is damn good looking!

Conclusion: Good movie. Worth watching. My dad especially enjoyed it, and he is a man firmly rooted in the nitty-gritties of real life.