Review: 'My Friend Pinto' will make you smile

Film: My Friend Pinto (U)

Director: Raaghav Dar

Cast: Prateik, Kalki Koechlin, Arjun Mathur, Shruti Seth, Divya Dutta, Makrand Deshpande & others

Rating: ***

 

Broken vases, rescued puppies, burning cars, uprooted street lamps is what Micheal Pinto leaves behind wherever he goes. Sounds like the goon from the street getting into silly fist fights, doesn’t he?

No. He’s a simpleton who arrives in Mumbai from Goa on New Year’s Eve, so plain he doesn’t even realise he’s an unwelcome guest at his school friend Sameer’s (Arjun) home. He has just lost his mother, nurtures the dream of joining the religious order and doesn’t even know what email is. Even his handwritten letters are something Sam doesn’t care much about anymore.

My Friend Pinto unfolds in one night, when Michael has a brush with the “strange city, strange people.” The film has some funny and many not-so-funny yet endearing moments involving the good-natured mama’s boy, Michael. He meets Mallu Don Narayanan (Makarand), his failed actress wife Reshma (Divya), a good-for-nothing gambler Yusuf, twin henchmen Ajay and Vijay and aspiring dancer Maggie (Kalki), whose life he touches and changes unknowingly.

The story is seen through the eyes of narrator Sameer (let’s not question how he knows what Pinto was up to while he was sitting in his car arguing with his wife). Sameer credits an unsuspecting Pinto with touching his life in a big way, bringing his marriage back on track.

Prateik as Pinto is not only loveable but also adds another film, after Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na and Dhobi Ghat, to his to-be-proud-of films list. Kalki doesn’t have much to do, more like a prop overshadowed by Prateik, and is also done in by the lack of screen time. Arjun and Shruti are natural as the husband and wife duo, while Makarand and Divya are drivers for some genuinely funny moments. Raj Zutshi as a gangster with his twin henchmen is a bit of a bore, over-the-top yet wan.

From writing the screenplay of Rahul Dholakia’s Lamhaa (2010), a film based on the complex Kashmir issue, to the simple and clutter-free My Friend Pinto, director Raaghav Dar takes a huge leap. This story is sure simple, but told with great sincerity, letting viewers find their own messages in the way Michael sees life. It’s a Sanjay Leela Bhansali production and for a change, it’s not dark and depressing.

You may find yourself asking “Does anyone like Michael exists in today’s world?” And you’re most likely to get “No” as an answer. All the more reason we must have a little of Michael in us, selfless, helpful and unpretentious.

My Friend Pinto is one happy, no-frills film that’s sure to make you smile. As one of the characters rightly says, a smile is what we need the most sometimes. Recommended.