Balwinder Singh Famous Ho Gaya

Morally vacuous and riddled with asinine scenes, this film is best avoided

As with bees, the lure of Hindi cinema brings singers to the nectar. Mika Singh and Shaan, professionals from the music world, make perfect fools of themselves in this ridiculous movie. In one scene they are rushing down a hospital corridor in drag, together with comedian Rajpal Yadav and villain Vindu Dara Singh, also in drag. In all probability, the creative inspiration for this situation comes from the ‘gang drag’ scenes in Humshakals. Suddenly, hairy men in skirts and falsies are all the rage.

Balwinder Singh Famous Ho Gaya has a corny plot. Two guys, both called Balwinder Singh (Mika Singh and Shaan), both survivors and aspiring to success in Mumbai, are forced to share a room. One day, a well-known millionaire (Anupam Kher) puts an advertisement in the newspapers saying that he is looking for his long-lost grandson, also called Balwinder. Over a hundred Balwinders turn up for the audition at the millionaire’s mansion, so he devises a tricky questionnaire to eliminate the counterfeits. Finally, a shortlist of four aspiring grandsons is drawn up.

The film has no interest in discussing greed and the depths to which a person will sink—debasing all human values—to acquire unearned wealth. Instead, it looks at the scenario as a career opportunity for young men. It presents itself as a management training workshop for people who want to dupe sentimental old men longing for an heir. In such a situation, what is the best approach?

One Balwinder tries to impress by doing ‘surya namaskar’ early in the morning, the other talks about his childhood in Ludhiana, where he figures the grandson was lost. The least one would have expected of the movie is that the songs, sung by the lead actors themselves, would be catchy. Unfortunately, that is not the case. A saving grace is the female lead: Brazilian actress Gabriela Bertante is pleasant.

Avoid this film.

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Ajit Duara