Will immediately 'K'ONNECT with the audience!. Review on Kismat Konnection

Yesterday night, I got a chance to watch the 'to-be-released-this Friday '  flick, Kismat Konnection at a screening held by my family friends who are the owners of one of the best cinemas in  my town.Hence, the review...

Kismat Konnection is one of the most awaited films this season and there is lots of hype surrounding it. However, it happens quite frequently that many hyped movies turn out to be big disappointments such asTashan, Love Story 2050, Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic, etc. Fortunately, this is not the case with Kismat Konnection. It`s not just all hype and no substance but a movie with a soul that will immediately 'K'ONNECT with the audience.

The basic plot of the movie revolves around Raj Malhotra (Shahid Kapoor) (doesn`t the name sound too SRKish?...but the film is not as cliched as the name sounds, thankfully:), an architect, who was touted as the next BIG thing during his college days...be it academics, sports, dramatics...he was an all-rounder and his friends had made a TIME magazine cover with Raj`s face on it. Despite his potential and abilities, Raj failed to make it big in life and after 5 years of his graduation he is still not able to achieve success in his life because luck never supported him. Something or the other always goes wrong with him...when he has to wake up at the morning, his alarm clock doesn`t ring, when he is about to be appointed as an architect, the boss of the contracting company dies and so on. Raj tries his luck once again to be appointed for a shopping mall construction project by Mr.Gill (Om Puri) but luck once again betrays him when an old school friend (Manoj Bohra) of his attempts to take away the contract from Raj`s hands and secure it for himself. A disappointed Raj  one night sees an advertisment on the television which claims to provide the solution to everyone`s problems in life. The advertisment states that anyone who contacts Haseena Bano Jaan (Juhi Chawla) will be freed from all his worries forever. So, Raj obviously notes down her address and drops in at her premises. Haseena Bano Jaan states that there is a force that is his lucky charm and would remove all his problems but he has to recognize that 'force'. Raj meets Priya (Vidya Balan) several times...once when his car is about to collide with hers...or at the ATM card machine spot or at a bar. Each time he meets her, things turn out to be in his favour and miracles take place with him. He manages to secure a construction contract and also manages to impress Mr.Gill, when it seems impossible to him. It is then when he realizes that Priya is that force that is his lucky charm. However, there are two problems; Priya runs an old citizens hospital and Gill`s shopping mall is constructed at the same place as the hospital and secondly, Priya is about to get married within a few days and Raj won`t have his lucky charm for very long, with him. Plus, Raj also realises by then that he is in love with Priya.

The movie is very simple without any 'mirch-masala' or item number...yet this very simplicity is the reason which manages to hold the viewers` interest because it makes the film look more believable and realistic. There is a lot of humour in the film but thank God that director Aziz Mirza`s sense of humour is very subtle, not loud and cheap, which works big time because the audience of today has matured and Johnny Lever or even Rajpal Yadav type comedy is out of fashion, now. The movie has a lot of entertaining moments, the best ones being; when Raj and his friend (played by Vishal Malhotra) get to know that the boss of the company with whom they had contracted has died, when both the friends go to Gill`s office for the first time, when Shahid and Vidya meet for the first time in a road accident, Juhi Chawla`s introduction scene, all the light moments between Shahid and Vidya, when Vidya finds out the reality of her fiance` and the climax of the movie, especially with the twist in the story brought about by Boman Irani.

The soundtrack composed by Pritam is another strong point. My favourite songs from the movie are Aai Paapi, Bakhuda Tum Hi Ho, Sohni and Move Your Body (which appears during the end credits). Other than that, the camerawork of the movie si fantastic. Most of the movie has been shot in Canada and it has been shot so beautifully that I felt like going on a vacation there :) The film carries a very stylish look but thank God that the story didn`t suffer due to this style...the impact of the movie only enhanced with it.

Performances are also top-notch. Shahid Kapoor, even though looks quite young (he can`t help it :) has undoubtedly matured as an actor and is a complete natural. Vidya Balan is the best thing that has happened to Bollywood since last three years. She is one of the most talented actresses today. Katrina Kaif, Priyanka Chopra, Lara Dutta, etc. maybe some of the top actresses today but not any of them is half as talented as Vidya, when it comes to acting. Vidya almost instantly clicks with the audience and the ease with which she performs makes it a treat to watch her act. She also looks amazingly gorgeous, throughout.

Vishal Malhotra who played Shahid`s best friend in Ishq Vishk is back with Shahid once again and does a fantastic job, complementing Shahid throughout and gives a spontaneous performance. Juhi Chawla does something quite different in the role of a numerologist (a la Sunita Menon) and manages to entertain in her special appearance.The surprise factor of the movie is Himani Shivpuri as Om Puri`s wife. For the first time, she does not irritate but actually makes you laugh, thanks to her perfect comic timing, this time around. You will just love her (loved her dialogue, ''first, reduce your tone"). Om Puri, Boman Irani and others also do a fine job.

On the whole, Kismat Konnection is a complete family entertainer which is sure to lure everyone`s hearts and do well at the box-office too. You should definitely give this one a watch.

BTW, I was just thinking, while watching the movie that how come everyone in Canada speaks Hindi?  (confused~~~)