Movie Review-What's Your Raashee

There's no pleasure like the fun of seeing a new movie in the hall. Neither a DVD(which releases after I've read at least a dozen reviews) or a pirated print(Arghh!Those colours) can replace the pure fun of seeing a fun (I usually don't see any other kind) movie in a good hall, Lamcy's halls being one of my favourites.

I'd picked a side aisle this time, with only one seat next to it, hoping that no-one would take it. But, no such luck- a cap-wearing guy who insisted on putting his feet up on the seats in front(since they were empty) made me feel quite irritated. Why do people treat a cinema hall as if it's their property to spoil? (Come to think of it, they wouldn't spoil their own property like this).

But, it was slightly better(there's always something to be thankful for, as I say) than last week's Dil Bole Hadippa experience of the 'wide' Uncle who should have taken two tickets to seat himself(That review coming up later), chomping away at nachos and slurping at the achaar kinda thing provided with it, not to speak of the lingering smell that didn't go away till the end of the movie). Then, he insisted on talking to his wife, humming along with the title theme of Dharma Productions, et al.

Well, here's the review, without revealing too much of the storyline:

(Warning: For those who've seen the '90s serial, Mr. Yogi, this theme might seem like a repeat, and, the guy who played Mr. Yogi(I hear he's no longer in this world) did a better job than Harman)

The different theme of ‘What’s Your Raashee’ is what makes the movie stand out from the rest of the smorgasbord of releases of the past few weeks. With Priyanka Chopra playing twelve different roles each representing a Zodiac(Raashee) sign, the movie is an out-an-out PC movie. The titles appear to have been inspired by the James Bond theme, for some reason, with curvy heroine(s) flitting and floating across the scene.

Harman Baweja plays Yogesh Patel, who’s called in from the US of A by his parents on the pretext of his father(Aanjjan Shrivastava) having suffered a heart attack(I wonder whether this excuse is still so popular in reality?), when, in reality, they want him to get married (in 10 days, as per the astrologer’s instructions, played by Rajesh Vivek, who’s also a defective detective) so that his brother(Dilip Joshi)’s heavy debt can be paid off. His brother’s debtors include a villain(Yuri Suri, playing Moolchand Bhai) who uses a walnut breaker to cut the fingers of his victims who don’t pay up on time.

Harman chances upon a book titled ‘What’s your Raashee’, and decides to see a girl of each raashee before deciding on one of them as his bride. Therein enters Priyanka. From her first role of a Gujarati girl wanting to show off her ability to adapt to American life by using statements like ‘No menshun’(which we do commonly hear in Gujarat in real life), to a hi-profile businesswoman to the ultra-rich lady acting like she’s bonkers, to gauge whether Harman wants just her money, to an under-age girl being forced to act adult by debt-ridden parents to the rest, each role is carried off by aplomb by her.

Harman’s final decision and who finally becomes his bride, form the gist of the rest of the movie. Peppered with some fun dialogues like the Gujarati girl’s father responding to Harman’s intro of ‘Y.B.Patel’, with a ‘don’t worry- you don’t need to ask that. Patel’s are the best, etc etc’, make one break out into smiles or guffaws. Another good one was Harman asking Priyanka' Do you know how to make dhokla?', and, when she appears stymmied, he changes the topic quickly...I wonder whether that's a very typical question Gujju grooms ask? I must ask some of my friends.

The main drawback of the movie was that there were too many songs, making the movie the movie a three hours plus one, which, by today’s standards, is ‘ just too long’.

All in all, a fair TP movie, but, without the repeat value which we expect from a director of Ashutosh ‘Lagaan’Gowarikar.