WEDDING PULLAV

Eros International and GR8 Entertainment’s Wedding Pullav (UA) is a love story. Adi (Diganth Manchale) and Anushka (Anushka Ranjan) are very close friends. Adi is due to get engaged to Rhea (Sonali Seygal). He is thrilled when Anushka makes it for the engagement ceremony at the last moment. Even as preparations are on for the grand wedding a few days later, it is decided by Anushka’s family that her marriage with boyfriend J (Karan V. Grover) should also be solemnised at the same time. J comes from abroad for his wedding.

The functions leading to the two weddings and the time the people spend together makes both, Adi and Anushka, realise that they actually are more than just good friends, that they love one another. Some elders in the families of Adi and Anushka also realise this and so do Rhea and J. But nobody is willing to say this. Probably, Adi is too indebted to Rhea’s father, Kumar (Parmeet Sethi), for having given him a chance to realise his long-cherished dream of designing a motorcycle and hence cannot muster courage to call off his impending marriage with Rhea. On her part, Rhea loves Adi so much that she is in denial mode and wants to dismiss off the sparks between Adi and Anushka as nothing more than two friends being very close to one another. Anushka is hesitant to make the first move.

What happens thereafter? Are the marriages stalled or do they get solemnised as per plans? Does anybody try to present the real picture before the rest? Who is he/she?

Pooja Verma’s story is oft-repeated and moves on the predictable path without offering any novelty. The screenplay, written by Shashi Ranjan, Pooja Verma and Rahul Patel, is as routine as routine can be. The elders in the families of Adi and Anushka realise that both are in love with one another but they, quite stupidly, refuse to come forward and stop the impending catastrophe if the two were to marry the persons they are slated to marry. Why any concerned elder in the family would behave so weirdly is not explained. Again, Adi meets Anushka one evening to pour his heart out, but the latter – aware of what he has in mind – gets irritated at a minor aberration and walks away without letting him tell her what she, in the first place, was dying to hear. It is scenes like these which put the audience off the drama. Although Luv Kapoor (Rishi Kapoor) is not a family member, his proactive participation in trying to solve the mess looks a bit uncalled for, especially when the family members maintain an uncalled for silence. What’s more, the film starts on a light note but becomes so heavy in the second half that it seems difficult for the newcomers to shoulder its burden. The audience does not sympathise with any character and, therefore, does not root for anyone – something which is a big minus point in a love story. Even otherwise, the film does not have the fun and frolic of a youthful love story made with newcomers. Bharat Kukreti’s dialogues are routine.

Anushka Ranjan makes an ordinary debut. She looks fair and her performance is average. Diganth Manchale also makes a lacklustre debut. He doesn’t have the traditional looks of a hero. His acting is okay. Sonali Seygal is alright and makes her mark in a couple of emotional scenes. Karan V. Grover is mechanical. He looks okay. Rishi Kapoor is earnest. Satish Kaushik is natural. Himani Shivpuri makes her presence felt. Parmeet Sethi leaves a mark. Kitu Gidwani is good. Upasna Singh adds energy in her scenes. Aru Verma is good as Petha. In the role of Batli, Ali Khan passes muster. Neha Tomar is passable as Nikki. Tripta Lakhanpal is endearing in the role of Bijji. Aparna Ghosal (as Shammi), Radha Khandelwal (as Pammi), Julia Bruchwitz (as Roxy), Joe (as Derek, friend of J), Elena (as Paula, friend of J), Sumant Bhatia (as Khurana) and Harpreet Sethi (as Khurana’s son) provide dull support.

Binod Pradhan’s direction relies heavily on the tried and tested style of narration. Of course, the unexciting script is also a handicap he has to contend with in his maiden film as director. Salim-Sulaiman’s music is a plus point. The party songs are fast-paced while the ‘O jaaniya’ song has melody. Irfan Siddique’s lyrics are alright. Pony Verma’s choreography doesn’t add much to the songs. Rohit Kulkarni’s background music is functional. Gopal Shah’s cinematography is very nice. Kunal Bhandula and Bijon Dasgupta’s production designing is okay. Sayyed Sameer’s editing could have been much more sharp.

On the whole, Wedding Pullav will not find many takers because it is too routine, too predictable and too plastic. Flop.