The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : For the sake of forty winks

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Aug 27, 2006

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

For the sake of forty winks

Aap Ki Khatir (Hindi)

Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Akshaye Khanna, Amisha Patel, Sunil Shetty

Director: Dharmesh Darshan

You can take Dharmesh Darshan to England but can never expect him to show a modicum of modesty. He is a man unfazed by ugly extravagance, untouched by subtleties. He plies his loud trade once more in this long, and lousy film. He probably made it to get rid of ennui. In the process he manages to transfer it all to unsuspecting viewers who get two hours sleep for their admission fare.

Chopras and Khannas

"Aap Ki Khatir" is the kind of film a director makes when he wants to indulge a few actors. Here Darshan seeks to do Priyanka Chopra and Akshaye Khanna a favour with roles suitably stitched to complement their onscreen personality. So, Akshaye gets to do some breezy comedy while Priyanka gets to sleep with false eyelashes and mascara and everything. She "hires" a boyfriend from Lokhandwala to win over her boyfriend from London after a round of jealousy. Sick. That gives Darshan an excuse to take his crew to London and the girls to get into the mini skirts only they are seen wearing in public places -- the locals are wrapped from head to toe in mufflers and gloves.

And since Priyanka is still not quite value for money for frontbenchers, Darshan brings in Amisha Patel as the second girlfriend of the London boyfriend - Dino `sleepy' Morea.

Enter the Patels

Now, poor, poor Amisha! Her lips must be aching after all the relentless, meaningless pouting in scene after scene, film after film! She does her best to make Priyanka appear a great actress. The plot gets confused as the director loses his baton somewhere between India and England.

There appears another local Indian guy - Sunil Shetty - ready to marry Amisha. And....Yawn. Little wonder, half way through the film, Akshaye concedes, "I am confused".

Unimitigated mediocrity

You too would be confused if you sat through this tedium masquerading as a romantic comedy.

Sorry, but some nice comic touches from Akshaye and Anupam Kher, a couple of bearable tunes from Himesh Reshammiya are poor compensation for two hours of unmitigated mediocrity.

For whose sake?

ZIYA US SALAM

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