Film Review: Badhaai Ho
At the halfway stage, the viewer may just be left wondering which subplot Akshat Ghildial’s screenplay would lay more emphasis on – the romance and impending marriage of Nakul (Ayushmann Khurrana) with office-colleague Renee (Sanya Malhotra), or the one involving Nakul’s parents. But, by then, the story had done enough for the viewer to guess, and hope for a novel and offbeat narrative.
The Kaushiks – Nakul, teenaged brother (Shardul Rana), 50-something parents Jeetender (Gajraj Rao) and Priyamvada (Neena Gupta), with Jeetu’s mother (veteran Surekha Sikri) live in the modest locality of Delhi’s Lodhi Colony. But one day the Kaushiks discover that Priyamvada is pregnant! Emotions of consternation and disquiet in the family run high as she’s unwilling to abort. The neighbours too have a field day. Renee’s elite mother (superbly underplayed by Sheeba Chadha), who till then had approved of Nakul as a prospective son-in-law, utters “His family is a circus I don’t want to buy tickets for.”
It’s an unusual milieu and ‘Badhaai Ho’ thrives on a plot not seen in Hindi films. It’s a casting coup of sorts with Gajraj Rao getting his most extended screen role till date. Neena Gupta, in a challenging role, impresses. While Malhotra acts well within her limited screen time, Khurrana shows that atypical roles – with his debut ‘Vicky Donor’ and the just-released ‘Andhadhun’ – are his forte. Sikri’s one-liners, above-par performances from the supporting cast and a gripping second half more than makes up for an extended first half.
Director Amit Sharma draws the best out of both Gajraj Rao and Neena Gupta – while Gupta emotes with her eyes, Rao’s facial expressions say it all. It’s a role the late Utpal Dutt would have excelled in, with a story Hrishikesh Mukherjee would have weaved in the early 70s.
