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Review: 'Ishqiya' is pure ‘adult’ fun

The film — with its great music, superior performances and memorable dialogues — cannot be missed, unless you are under 18 years of age.

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Film: Ishqiya (A)
Director: Abhishek Chaubey
Cast: Naseeruddin Shah, Arshad Warsi, Vidya Balan, Salman Shahid and others
Rating: *** ½

Think Sholay. Jai and Veeru are on the run and decide to go find shelter at their friend Thakur’s place. On landing there, they find Thakur dead and Radha, a widow, the sole survivor at home.

She is not the shy, demure types, dimming lanterns from a distance and roaming around in a white sari with a pallu covering her face. Instead, she flirts with both the friends, which eventually leads to the unbreakable jodi of Jai and Veeru getting into fisticuffs over Radha.

Okay, that does sound like quite an outrageous version of Sholay, and no, Ishqiya isn’t a remake of the classic either. But the film explores a similar space. Filmed in rustic areas, shot like a spaghetti Western, Ishqiya does what Tashan tried and failed to do — show small-town India with style and make it look ‘cool’.

Khalujaan (Shah) and Babban (Warsi) steal money amounting to Rs25 lakh from Mushtaqbhai (Shahid) and run away to Gorakhpur. There, they seek shelter at the house of an old ally, Varma, but find that he is dead. Varma’s widow Krishna (Vidya) lets them stay at her home till they can find a way to escape across the border to Nepal.

But Mushtaqbhai lands up there and threatens to kill all three if he does not get his money within a stipulated time. Krishna, who is now under threat too, hatches a plan to kidnap KK, one of Gorakhpur’s richer men, and demand ransom, which will help the three to tide over their problem.

Complications ensue when Khalujaan falls head over heels in love with Krishna, while the philanderer Babban starts lusting after her, falling in love with her eventually, too.

Krishna, in return, responds to the advances by both, flirting with the two and leaving them guessing about her feelings for them. But she has a bigger ‘plen’ in mind, one that shocks both Khalujaan and Babban.

In Ishqiya, director Abhishek Chaubey combines elements of his guru Vishal Bharadwaj (the rawness of the script) with that of Quentin Tarantino (the background score and wild characters), which results in an edgy, stylised comic thriller.

Bharadwaj's dialogues may make some people squirm in their seats but will be a hit among the majority. In fact, talking in a Bhopali accent and saying "c--- sulphate" might become the ‘in’ thing soon.

The film is difficult to be slotted in any category actually. The dialogues are witty, situations funny, there is a lot of romance thrown in, and there is a thrill element, too. Ishqiya is basically two hours of all-out entertainment and, in fact, though the short length works in its favour, you might be left wanting for more.

Bharadwaj's music is outstanding. Every song is a treat, especially 'Dil Toh Bachcha Hai'. Its juxtaposition with Khalujaan fantasising about Krishna as his wife and the sensual play between Babban and Krishna on the other hand is fantastic.

The background score alternates between Western music (the kind you heard in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly) and retro (like in Hindi thrillers in the 1970s).

The performances are all top notch. Naseeruddin Shah is a treat. With very few dialogues, Khalujaan has to emote more through his eyes and mannerisms and Shah gets it just right. In scenes where he looks at Krishna longingly, he makes you laugh and sympathise with him at the same time.

Vidya as Krishna is smoking hot as the village belle, and thanks to her stylist and the director comes across as a very desirable woman even when she’s covered from head to toe. But you sometimes wonder where her character is going. Is she a victim, is she wily, is she just looking for fun? Though her actions are explained to some extent in the climax, her character may not go down well with the more traditional audience. But after Paa, Vidya backs it up with another brilliant turn.

Arshad Warsi is in fine form. Getting the meatier dialogues, he does full justice to them. His interactions with the village lad, Nandu, are hilarious. The casting team deserves a pat on its backs, not only for the principal cast, but also the supporting actors.

Mushtaqbhai is played by Salman Shahid, the Pakistani actor who enacted the role of the Talib in Kabul Express. Known as the Naseeruddin Shah of Pakistan, it’s great to watch him interact with the original Naseer, and he shines in the few scenes he has. The actors playing Varma and KK are apt for their roles too.

Ishqiya, among other things, is a great start for director Abhishek Chaubey. The film — with its great music, superior performances, and memorable dialogues — cannot be missed, unless you are under 18 years of age. This is pure ‘adult’ fun.

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