Love Khichdi

Try stretching a rubber band beyond a point and it’s bound to snap. Try stretching a waferthin story and it’s bound to blow apart too. That’s precisely the problem with LOVE KHICHDI. Frankly, LOVE KHICHDI is a collage of romantic moments assembled by director Srinivas Bhashyam. LOVE KHICHDI looks at the various women who flit in and out of the protagonist’s life. It’s a metro-centric concept that could’ve worked well if [a] the assorted women wouldn’t appear and disappear randomly and [b] the narrative had been limited to 1.30 hours, instead of 2 + hours. These two factors make this khichdi far from appetising. Vir [Randeep Hooda], a bachelor from a small town, works as a chef in a hotel in Mumbai; a handsome, charming and macho man who really needs to grow up. Vir flirts with, yeans for, lusts after and is intimidated by one beautiful woman after another. From his man-hating maid Shanta Bai [Sonali Kulkarni], whom he ogles as she wipes his floor to the man-eating Nafisa [Kalpana Pandit], the powerful call-center executive… from the beauty-with-brains Sharmishta [Rituparna Sengupta] to the pretty and playful Parminder [Divya Dutta], Vir is drawn to them all. All along, he is supported by his buddy, Sandhya [Sada], whom he takes for granted till it’s too late. LOVE KHICHDI mirrors the lifestyle of a section of youth today, who want to have all the fun, minus commitment. In this case, the film projects the flirtatious nature of a chef who believes in ‘no strings attached’ fun.

The assorted women here add spice to his already spicy life. Very interesting!  But the escapades here are not as adventurous, as one expects them to be. Barring the portions involving the maid servant [Sonali Kulkarni] and also the adolescent neighbour [Riya Sen], the character sketches of the remaining women just doesn’t appeal. To cite two instances, Rituparna Sengupta hides the fact that she’s a married woman till the very end, although she could’ve conveyed that much earlier. Also, Sada’s character seems so confused. Why doesn’t she reveal her true feelings beforehand? It would’ve saved so much time, frankly. Director Srinivas Bhashyam had an interesting idea, but he loses the plot midway. Pritam’s music is humdrum. Dialogues are well penned at places. Randeep sparkles all through, except towards the climax, when he breaks down. Amongst ladies, Sonal Kulkarni and Sada enact their parts very well. Riya Sen does bring a smile on your face. Saurabh Shukla is alright.
 
On the whole, this khichdi is just not yummy!