Director: Kedar Shinde
Cast: Tabu, Sharman Joshi, Vatsal Seth, Yuvika Choudhary .
Amidst romance flicks that are repetitive and comedies that are clichéd, the romantic comedy Toh Baat Pakki comes as a breath of fresh air as much as the breezy and fancy hill-station of Palanpur that it’s set in. Though not path-breaking in any terms, the flavour of the film is a delectable balance between candyfloss and masala.
Rajeshwari Saxena (Tabu) is a distinctive middleclass housewife who wants to get her younger sister Nisha (Yuvika Chaudhary) married to a well-to-do guy. In a dowry-demanding society where it’s difficult to find a good groom, she is on a constant lookout for a suitable match for Nisha.
Seeing an engineering student Rahul (Sharman Joshi) as a prospective partner for Nisha, Rajeshwari tries to hook up the two by hook or crook. Just when the two fall for each other and marriage is on the cards enters Yuvraj (Vatsal Sheth). With his gaadi-bungla-naukri status, Rajeshwari sees a more potential partner for Nisha in him. So she now proposes marriage of Nisha with Yuvraj much against Nisha and Rahul’s wishes.
Now Rahul has to win back Nisha but not against the will of her family. So he does a Shah Rukh Khan of Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge by entering the Saxena household and playing a wedding planner. Simultaneously he schemes and manipulates Yuvraj’s mind against Nisha like Uday Chopra of Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai . After much marital mayhem in the climax like in Priyadarshan’s Hulchul , the culmination of a film, for a zillionth time, resorts to the climax of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai as Vatsal Sheth does a Salman Khan, handing over Nisha to Rahul with the customary cliché ‘ sambhalo apni amanat ’.
But despite the multiple movie references that one can distinctly derive from Johar-Chopra flicks, Kedar Shinde’s Toh Baat Pakki essentially works because comedy keeps overshadowing candyfloss in the treatment. Vibha Singh’s screenplay is laced with fresh and frothy scenes and the well-worded dialogues comprise of casual conversations from everyday life that one can easily relate to. The humour is not slapstick which adds to the appeal.
The mood intermittently switches from comedy to emotions in the second half where some more scheming by Sharman Joshi would have enlivened the proceedings. Nevertheless minimalism is always better than exaggeration. Also in the sugar-sweet climax, one fails to witness the wit that was prevalent through the film. The suspense on who would get the girl is unnecessarily stretched till the very last scene when it’s apparent from the very first.
The film could have clearly done without the surplus song-and-dance, especially when Pritam’s music isn’t as inspiring as usual. Art directors Shailesh Mahadik and Shital Kanvinde deck up the fictitious hill-station of Palanpur in pleasing pastel shades which cinematographers Rahul Jadhav and Raja Satankar capture to an appealing effect.
The film essentially works for its spirited performances by Tabu and Sharman Joshi. It’s a treat to watch Tabu in terrific form after a long time as she impresses in an author-backed role. Certainly this is one of her most entertaining acts since Biwi No.1 that gives her the scope to display her flair for comedy which she lost to more serious roles subsequently. Comedy comes naturally to Sharman Joshi as he excels in expressions and timing to come up with a splendid performance. Yuvika Chaudhary is charming. Vatsal Sheth is decent. Ayub Khan reminds of the dismissive husband characters that Kadar Khan used to play in family dramas of the 80s.
Rajeshwari Saxena (Tabu) is a distinctive middleclass housewife who wants to get her younger sister Nisha (Yuvika Chaudhary) married to a well-to-do guy. In a dowry-demanding society where it’s difficult to find a good groom, she is on a constant lookout for a suitable match for Nisha.
Seeing an engineering student Rahul (Sharman Joshi) as a prospective partner for Nisha, Rajeshwari tries to hook up the two by hook or crook. Just when the two fall for each other and marriage is on the cards enters Yuvraj (Vatsal Sheth). With his gaadi-bungla-naukri status, Rajeshwari sees a more potential partner for Nisha in him. So she now proposes marriage of Nisha with Yuvraj much against Nisha and Rahul’s wishes.
Now Rahul has to win back Nisha but not against the will of her family. So he does a Shah Rukh Khan of Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge by entering the Saxena household and playing a wedding planner. Simultaneously he schemes and manipulates Yuvraj’s mind against Nisha like Uday Chopra of Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai . After much marital mayhem in the climax like in Priyadarshan’s Hulchul , the culmination of a film, for a zillionth time, resorts to the climax of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai as Vatsal Sheth does a Salman Khan, handing over Nisha to Rahul with the customary cliché ‘ sambhalo apni amanat ’.
But despite the multiple movie references that one can distinctly derive from Johar-Chopra flicks, Kedar Shinde’s Toh Baat Pakki essentially works because comedy keeps overshadowing candyfloss in the treatment. Vibha Singh’s screenplay is laced with fresh and frothy scenes and the well-worded dialogues comprise of casual conversations from everyday life that one can easily relate to. The humour is not slapstick which adds to the appeal.
The mood intermittently switches from comedy to emotions in the second half where some more scheming by Sharman Joshi would have enlivened the proceedings. Nevertheless minimalism is always better than exaggeration. Also in the sugar-sweet climax, one fails to witness the wit that was prevalent through the film. The suspense on who would get the girl is unnecessarily stretched till the very last scene when it’s apparent from the very first.
The film could have clearly done without the surplus song-and-dance, especially when Pritam’s music isn’t as inspiring as usual. Art directors Shailesh Mahadik and Shital Kanvinde deck up the fictitious hill-station of Palanpur in pleasing pastel shades which cinematographers Rahul Jadhav and Raja Satankar capture to an appealing effect.
The film essentially works for its spirited performances by Tabu and Sharman Joshi. It’s a treat to watch Tabu in terrific form after a long time as she impresses in an author-backed role. Certainly this is one of her most entertaining acts since Biwi No.1 that gives her the scope to display her flair for comedy which she lost to more serious roles subsequently. Comedy comes naturally to Sharman Joshi as he excels in expressions and timing to come up with a splendid performance. Yuvika Chaudhary is charming. Vatsal Sheth is decent. Ayub Khan reminds of the dismissive husband characters that Kadar Khan used to play in family dramas of the 80s.
