Genre : Comedy
Year : 2010
Running time : 2 hours
Director : Ashwani Dhir
Cast : Ajay Devgn, Konkona Sen Sharma, Paresh Rawal, Satish Kaushik
Kid rating : G
ATITHI TUM KAB JAOGE : OVER THE TOP BUT FUNNY!
The title says it all – the guest comes visiting all right, but he has no plans to leave, which leaves the hosts wondering. This film is tailor made for Indian /desi audiences since the “houseguest” is supposedly a revered creature in our culture, however over-bearing he may be. “Atithi tum kab jaoge” then, is “Atithi devo bhava” (Treat a guest like God) under stress.
Ajay Devgn plays Puneet, or Pappu, a script-writer in Mumbai. His wife Munmun (Konkona Sen Sharma) is also a working woman. They have a son, and are generally rushing about big-city life trying to live their urban lives. When distant relative Lambodar Chacha turns up to visit, they welcome him in. Chachaji settles in, gargling and farting his way through the house. He also likes food, and demands delicacies of his bahu. Basically with his noisy habits and querulous behavior he manages to upset the household and the hosts. When he is still firmly ensconced in the small apartment a few days later, and hasn’t thought about leaving, his hosts can’t take it anymore . . .
Paresh Rawal is fabulous as Lambodar Chacha, as is Konkona; in one hilarious scene Munmun follows Lambodar Chacha around with an air freshener trying to mitigate his “scent”. Ajay Devgan isn’t a natural comedian, but does passably. This is a comedy and given the subject, you expect over-done. A mildly annoying guest would not be quite as entertaining. The director milks the unwelcome guest issue to the hilt, and you laugh at how outrageous it is. And it is so funny, because most of us have been put upon hosts one time or another; we identify.
A fairly strong script and screenplay keeps you engrossed. A strong directorial hand keeps this over-the-top comedy afloat. The only time it wobbles is when the director, in some scenes, tries to infuse some artificial emotion and family-style melodrama into it; blood is thicker than water and all. Fortunately we recover from that hiccup. This is not a sophisticated film by any means, but what it is trying to achieve, it achieves well. ATKJ is a good overall comedy and pretty clean – recommended.
