Review: 'Jhootha Hi Sahi' has nothing going for it

Jhootha Hi Sahi (U)
Cast: John Abraham, Pakhi, Raghu Ram, Alisha Varde, Anaitha Nair, R Madhavan
Director: Abbas Tyrewala
Rating: *1/2

A weak, almost spineless screenplay, mediocre storyline, and “ajeebs” chemistry (rather, no chemistry) between lead pair Abraham and Pakhi contribute to the boredom that is Jhootha Hi Sahi.

A suicide helpline inadvertently prints the telephone number of Siddharth (Abraham) on its fliers. With no way to escape calls from distressed Indians in the UK, Siddharth takes it upon himself to pacify the suicidal tendencies of disturbed NRIs.

One night he gets a call from Mishka (Pakhi), broken after a bad relationship and on the verge of taking her life. Siddharth and Mishka get talking and suicidal feelings are thrown over London’s Tower Bridge. They become phone friends and Siddharth knows who Mishka is when she visits his bookstore.

Running the store with Pakistani friend Omar (Ram), Siddharth is a sloppy, bespectacled chap who stammers in the presence of beautiful women. He doesn’t reveal his identity to Mishka, who feels she has found a good phone friend in Fidato (the name she gives him) and a new pal in Sid.

Cheap jokes on nationality and the ISI and clichéd dialogues on life and living make Jhootha Hi Sahi stupid and unbearable. The Kabir (Madhavan) angle and the video store friend Sushi (Nair) look like last-minute, completely unnecessary additions to the script. Nair had saved Abraham’s last film Aashayein from the doldrums, but she can’t do much here because of her blink-and-you-miss appearance.

Sid’s friends, the laidback, fun and open-minded brother-sister duo Omar and Aaliya (Ram and Varde) provide the lighter moments in the film. They are, however, portrayed as stereotypical Pakistanis with Aaliya yelling “Tauba” almost every time she appears on screen.

You cannot help but wonder what the director was thinking when Omar hesitates to imbibe champagne at Aaliya’s wedding though he was seen guzzling pints of Tuborg beer only a few scenes earlier.

The lead pair have zilch chemistry and director Tyrewala (who wrote and directed the superhit romcom Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na) should have known better than to cast his wife as the heroine.

Looking not only older than a more hip Abraham, Pakhi also needs an acting workshop to understand the difference between acting and overacting.

Abraham cannot escape the same criticism either. He fails to shake off his 'hunk' status even though he sports dark-rimmed specs and a (invisible) paunch. The music, by Oscar-winning musician AR Rahman, is surprisingly less than average.

The exaggerated climax remains unconvincing and over-the-top. Only die-hard Abraham fans might flock to see him in a new avatar. If you are not among them, skip this one.