Genre : Drama
Year : 2013
Running time : 1 hour 48 minutes
Director : Aditya Datt
Cast : Paresh Rawal, Rajeev Khandelwal, Tena Desae,
Kid rating : PG-13
I’d almost missed this film, until a friend recommended it as “interesting”. And interesting it is, in its novel story. Sia (Tena Desae) and Vivaan (Rajeev Khandelwal) Agasthi are a couple who’ve won a vacation to Fiji, and are resolved to enjoy it. Amid the beauty of the locales and the splendid amenities and services of their hotel, they are also offered a chance to play a televised game. It seems simple enough, with clear rules which they think they will be able to follow. In view of the high prize money they agree to participate and the game begins. As it progresses the questions and tasks put to them become weirder and more dangerous, and the couple realize that they are in over their heads. . .
This genre of film is vastly underdone in Bollywood, so this was quite a novelty. Also the star cast had Paresh Rawal and Rajeev Khandelwal, both impressive actors. Rawal, although skilled, has been bogged down in mostly comedic roles, but here he plays a menacing, rule-bound taskmaster. Khandelwal I remember from the very engrossing “Aamir”, so I expected great things from him here. Both actors are underused, Rawal atleast manages subtle menace, but Khandelwal seems almost hammy. Tena Desae, a recent model turned actress, comes across as superficial here, although she did quite well in “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”. I do believe that these actors might have done a better job, had they had more to work with and been given better direction.
We know little about the characters of the film; Sia and Vivaan seem a loving couple and reasonable people, but that’s about all the information we have, and the poor acting doesn’t help. It is hard to care about the protagonists as such, so it is not their story that propels the film forward but the series of improbable questions and tasks that are a part of the game. With each question it becomes clear that the game-master has knowledge of their lives, their fears, likes and dislikes. Sia and Vivaan are concerned and so am I as viewer; there is more to this game than meets the eye.
I might be nitpicking here, but the film has a clickety-clackety feel to it. By that I mean that although there is an appearance of slick wealth – Fiji is beautiful, the protagonists young and pretty, the game well orchestrated with technology – it still feels like a shoddy low-budget film. The direction is poor, and the screenplay doesn’t quite flow. The songs are forgettable.
All is revealed in the end, and I have to say that the suspense is well-developed, with nary an inkling throughout the film. The film starts off well, starts to devolve into a C grade entertainer, and then almost redeems itself in the end. Despite its problems, this is a passable one-time watch if you enjoy movies of the suspense/thriller genre.
