Stale food served in a silver plate!. Review on Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham

One of the most hyped films in the history of Indian Cinema, KKKG is a big big film with all the ingredients that go to make a commercially successful film.Name it and u got it: Greatest Star Cast ever seen, Huge, Humongous sets, dazzling and eye-popping dress designs, foreign locales, and above all, the leadership of a wunderkid called Karan Johar.

I feel extremely sorry and sad to say, though, that the above factors are simply a waste of time and resources because K3G has failed to live upto my expectations as far as the 3 MAIN departments of film-making and these are: Story, Screenplay, and Direction. And unfortunately, all 3 are credited to Karan Johar. And that, single-handedly, is the movie's WEAKEST point.

I think that Karan should stop being over-confident in his attitude and his approach. To be confident of a success is something, but to build a huge cloud of hype which is much ado nothing is another. Karan pointed out that he has scripted and made a screenplay which shall make sure that all the actors get equal screen presence. No problem with that. But the main hitch is that none of the actors rise above their character.

The BASIC flaws are:

1.Story,Screenplay: The story is ages old and something we have got bored of seeing again and again on the silver screen. The family formula has been perfected to a certain extent by the Barjatya's and Chopra's and an attempt in that direction is as good as inviting trouble because your product is instantly compared to the best. Moving into the finer points of the story, Kareena's character seems superflous to the main plot and the movie could have done without her audacious and Sex-plosive dresses and accent. Her potrayal makes this movie unwatchable with the whole family.

The screenplay is also quite imperfect, with songs popping in and out of ANYWHERE and impeding the already SLOW screenplay and pacing. One feels irritated, even frustrated watching the unwanted songs and hence, the effect the songs were meant to deliver is completely lost. Even ''You are my Sonia'' feels completely out of place and feels like another item song.

Another important factor is the length of the movie, which is unusually long(almost 3.30 hrs) and calls for some better editing of the scenes, especially the second half. Unlike Lagaan, in which the length only added to the overall impact as a whole, here it grates on the nerves and one starts praying for ''THE END'' sign.

2.Direction: If Karan took a step forward with KKHH, I must say, he has taken 2 steps backward with KKKG. For, the treatment of the film is anything but extraordinary and the warmth usually associated with such movies at the end(the reunion) is completely missing. The confrontation scenes between Hrithik and Amitabh and more importantly, Shahrukh and Amitabh are devoid of the punch and effect which was last seen in Mohabbatein. Though the songs picturisations are stylish, they occur at all the wrong places which steals the enjoyment one usually gets watching them.The title song shows everyone praying, but in the interludes, they're all dancing, and getting back to praying the next second!!!! And finally, Karan has goofed up big time as far as emotional scenes are concerned. The stars as a whole don't deliver the impact usually associated with such Magnum Opuses because the director has not extracted the best from them. The worst shot was when Hrithik steps into UK, with bimbos in short skirts dancing around him, running around in tri-colour clothes with Vande Mataram in the background. Simply Horrible.

And as far as the technical teamwork goes, the choreography by Farah Khan is too good in some songs like Shava Shava and Sonia, while its okey-dokey in the others. Cinematography by Kiran Deohans is Good but no chance of winning any awards. Sets by Sharmishta Roy are grand but I felt that its a little weird to have the pooja room right in front of the entrance. Editing should have been better. Dress designs are good, but Kareena's dress code in the beginning(mini skirts and bra's) and sudden change to salwar kameez is difficult to digest. Music is very good and many of the songs are ear-friendly. And finally, the dialogues are ordinary at best.

Amitabh rules as far as performances go, mainly due to his voice and height. All others give average to above average performance. I was reduced to tears, watching a young hip-hopping guy like Hrithik shedding bucketful of tears every second scene. Kajol is good as usual, but in the first half she yells too much.

All in all, a ROYAL WASTE OF MONEY, TIME, TALENT AND ENERGY!!!