Film Review: Ajab Gazabb Love

Starring Jackky Bhagnani, Nidhi Subbaiah, Arjun Rampal, Arshad Warsi, Kirron Kher,Darshan Jariwala Directed by Sanjay Gadhvi Rating: *** There is a tradition of goofy humour in Hindi cinema that dates back to the time when Kishore Kumar ruled supreme. Kishore, the consummate entertainer, never had the dubious privilege of getting his versatility showcased in a showreel by a doting father. Jackky Bhagnani, lucky sod, gets to explore the whole gamut of hero-giri. Top to bottom. And then those close-ups of the toned midriff. He woos pretty chicks, rides fast cars…sometime he woos and rides at the same time (ha ha). He burns up the dance floor to the rhythm of grooves that have seen better takes. Y up, Jackky is a fun-seeker. Unmistakably, there is certain energy in the storytelling of Ajab Gazabb Love. The basic premise is from a successful Telugu film Seema Tapakai. For the Hindi avatar director Sanjay Gadhvi transcreates the material considerably. But the basic idea of a moneyed guy who has to pretend to be wealth-challenged to win the girl he loves, gives the film a sense of borderline pleasure. Luckily the poverty that Jackky aspires to… doesn’t overtake the film’s content. You never quite become enamored of his courtship antics. But the proceedings don’t grate on your nerves. Luckily for Gadhvi the cast gets a hang of the humour in no time at all. The dialogues are delivered with a fair amount of feisty flamboyance, rendering a sense of conviction into the outrageous goings-on, much in the same way that Govinda did in David Dhawan’s films. Even as the heroine is shown to be a trublue proletariat the film is deliciously pro-capitalism. Great speed, terrific cars, a high glamour quotient a low tolerance for life’s travails… Ajab Ghazabb is a hedonist’s primer with enough spirit and spunk to carry us along on its mega-luxuriant ride into the world of the rich and the fashionable. Ajab Gazabb is fun and done with the tongue firmly wedged in the cheek. The humour is goofy and thankfully bereft of the bawdy. Jackky is quite an all-rounder. He can sing dance and fool around…almost like a leaner distant cousin to Govinda! Bollywood debutante Nidhi Subbaiah is saucy. The pair with some able show-offmanship by director Gadhvi, whip up quite a dhoom…boom..whatever! Watch out for Arjun Rampal in a double role. He’s a scream. We get to see Rampal in two…no, make that three…very contrasting roles this week in Chakravyuh and Ajab Ghazabb Love. And that’s a good thing. Arshad Warsi in a cameo is a scene-stealer. Everyone in the film is out to have fun. And really, we can’t let them down by not sharing their mood of joie de vivre.