Movie Review: Atithi Tum Kab Jaoge?

The good news is 'Atithi tum kab jaoge' does have four funny one liners and a plot twist which makes the movie seem a little bit better than it actually is.

The bad news is that 'Atithi tum kab jaoge' is lazy, obvious, never emotionally real and, most unfortunately, sporadically funny at best. It's a movie you've seen before and you've seen done better. If you like watching Paresh Rawal play the same character he's played for most of his recent comedic career, and like to be able to predict every comic bit in a movie, 'Atithi Tum Kab jaoge' is your cup of tea.

The plot seems to be put out directly from the mad-libs style screenplay generator that Bollywood must have dozens of in every studio office. The story is just as directed in the trailers - Puneet (Ajay Devgan) is a scriptwriter married to his interior designer wife, Munmun (Konkona Sen Sharma). Puneet's uncle Chachaji (Paresh Rawal) invites himself to live with them and the proper shenanigans ensue. As the freeloading houseguest wears out his welcome after one day, the film wears out its welcome considerably sooner than that. What follows is nothing more than dumb fun, with the scales strongly tipped towards dumb.

Devgan makes a passable sparring partner for Rawal but Konkona Sen is as likable here as she was in 'Laga chunari Me Daag'. Director Ashwani Dhir shows no particular flair for slapstick comedy, but Rawal's effortlessly impeccable timing almost saves the day. Judging by his last few comedic roles, Rawal has been coasting a bit recently. While not on top form as Chachaji, it's a testament to his performance that Rawal remains likable and sympathetic, even when he's infuriating. Aseem Bajaj's cinematography is glossy, but Pritam's music is third rate. Satish Kaushik, Viju Khote and Mukesh Tiwari are absolutely wasted.

Final verdict? 'Atithi Tum Kab Jaoge?' is less funny than formulaic. Not to mention profoundly disheartening.