Dhobi Ghat (2011)

The film is a 'ground level' look at the hustle and bustle of Mumbai city through the eyes of the 4 lead protagonists - an introverted painter (Arun), an NRI investment banker (Shai) who is on a sabbatical in Mumbai, a young Muslim woman (Yasmin) who wants to give a video tour of Mumbai to her brother through a series of tapes and a young dhobi (Munna) who wants to make it big in the movies.

There isn't any particular story as such, as just some incidents affect these 4 protagonists. While Arun gets hold of Yasmin's tapes and is engrossed by them, Munna falls in love with Shai. Shai is attracted to Arun's intense yet recluse nature while she treats Munna as a good friend.

Prateik Babbar as the young dhobi is too good to be real. His style sense, his dressing, his shoes and grooming are hard to believe, given his social stature. He acts earnestly. Aamir Khan in a de-glam avatar tries to be cool and casual. There are generous helpings of English in the movie giving it a 'wannabe' effect. Monica Dogra as Shai is super smart and heavily anglicized. Kriti Malhotra is beautifully naive and wins us over with her pure innocence and intentions.

The way Tushar Kanti Ray has captured Mumbai is the highlight. The crowd, the hustle and the bustle etc. are all 'live' on screen. The shots on the streets of Mumbai are another example of smart production. Internationally renowned composer, Gustavo Santaolalla's music is there as a support stream without being particularly brilliant.

VERDICT: A different, offbeat attempt by Kiran Rao. Though not uplifting, it has good intentions nevertheless. 

Delhi Belly (2011)

The Plot
A bag of diamonds are replaced mistakenly with a bag of shit by 3 friends Tashi, Nitin and Arup. Tashi's girlfriend Sonia, an air-hostess is actually supposed to smuggle these diamonds unknowingly but, she hands it over to Tashi and the bag passes hands and finally turns into shit when it reaches the gangster that it is supposed to reach

The gangsters begin their hunt for the diamonds and they nab the 3 guys. But, a comedy of errors follow and the diamonds again land up with the 3 guys who sell it off. The gangsters kidnap Sonia and demand the diamonds back from the trio. They take the help of Menaka, Tashi's boss and one sided lover to save Sonia.

What happens to the gangsters, the diamonds and Tashi's love life is the culmination which is in true Guy Ritchie style with cops, shootouts et al. Aamir Khan makes an appearance in the end with a funny number.

                                                                           

Hits

• Absolute contempt for Indian cinema's traditions and values. Liberal use of expletives, exposure of skin and cheap jokes that make us laugh 
• 2 smoking hot ladies and they have some intense smooches and ****jobs with the lead man. The climatic smooch is in fact scorching and the kiss in the 'parda' is equally pulse-raising. 
• The lighthearted nature of the content. Perfect timepass. 
• The fat guy Nitin is perfect for the role of the guy with a troublesome tummy who farts regularly. 
• The climax is particularly the clincher. Reminds us of some cult English films. 

Misses

• The shitty jokes are overdone and are not in good taste after a certain point. 
• Imran Khan is very plastic and artificial. His looks are good, nevertheless. 
• 'Bhaag DK Bose' could have been picturized entirely. Even as a montage, the song deserved its entirety and not just the bits and pieces that has come up on screen. 

VERDICT

Justifies the hype well and the tagline even better