Jul 02, 2006 12:38 AM
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Views: An Eminently Time Pass movie, this one comes across a whiff of fresh air, set apart from the melodramatics or the cliched mushy-romance movies. It is a short movie, not more than 2 hours long but totally watchable. Though the basic premise is borrowed from the Hollywood movie Changing Lanes , its made-over a lot to fit into the Indian mileu of things. The movie’s about a Taxi Driver- Raghav (Nana) & a Spoil-rich-brat Jai Mittal (John) who clash one fine day and the turn of events is such that they are each others throats for the rest of the movie.
Nana is a Taxi Driver who lies to his wife that he’s an Insurance agent and is constantly bickering about one thing or the other.He has changed 23 jobs in the last 15 years and is thoroughly pissed off at Life, the moneylenders, the taxi owner and all others who cross his path. John plays a rich kid whose father has left all his money to a trusted aide , leaving John penniless. He must produce a Will in court to get back his 300 Crore Property, & time is running out. Such is the scenario in which these two opposites meet and their meeting is one Helluva ride! Nana, egged on by John, causes an accident and is Jailed while John escapes silently. As Nana waits to get back at him, luck plays into his hands as John loses the key to the safe in Nana’s Taxi and he ain’t giving it back. What follows is a Cat n Mouse Game with each man going at the other’s throat.
Though the movie’s slickly made, the ‘Fizz’ ends once the primary clashes are over. Everything else is just there to fill in the gaps. The second half primarily deals with how both men get to know of the harsh realities of life and come to a common field.John realsises that his father has struggled a lot to earn what he has & transforms from a spoilt-rich-brat to a responsible individual. Nana, rather harshly, learns that one must take the negatives with the positives & change oneself rather than expecting the world to change. In the end, when realization dawns upon both, they forget the bickering of the past & make up. Sonali Kulkarni & Sameera Reddy have minute roles though Sonali’s got more substance. The Music is Strictly average, though ‘Mumbai Nagariya’ is a peppy song, well-sung by…….. Bappida!! of all people and sure is catchy. And since Sameera & John have to show off their hot Bods, there is a forgettable Club-Rain song thrown in!The “Meter-Down” song comes after the movie’s over and is quite well-sung & well-shot! Totally Hummable!
Performancewise, Nana has the best role & he comes out tops. John too plays his part with perfection & its fair to say that both complement each other a lot. Their ‘Personality Clashes’ & ‘One-UpManship’ games are well crafted/portrayed/executed. I can’t imagine anyone doing justice to the characters than these two! Sonali’s got a meatier role than Sameera and she plays it with conviction.Though the makeup/jewellery is too much for the wife of a taxi driver! Sameera just sleepwalks through her role and cannot quite display the malice needed for a ‘Money-grabbing’ Girl.
