Yamla Pagla Deewana 2 (2013) Review by Shivom Oza - Quite A Mixed Bag!

2/5 Stars

Deols (Dharmendra, Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol) are back with the sequel to their 2011 hit 'Yamla Pagla Deewana', 'Yamla Pagla
Deewana 2'. This time, the conning game will get bigger, with the conniving father-son duo (Dharam and Gajodhar) trying to pull off a heist in UK. 

Notwithstanding the magnificent screen presence of the Deols, 'Yamla Pagla Deewana 2' does leave a lot to be desired as far as the 'entertainment' quotient is concerned. Several gags and one-liners, albeit funny on paper, do not transcend well on screen. However, the superb soundtrack and the camaraderie between the Deols, does salvage the film to a large extent. It should work for audiences that do not mind slapstick humour. 

This film is not a continuation to 'Yamla Pagla Deewana'. Barring the three principal characters, Dharam (Dharmendra), Paramveer (Sunny Deol) and Gajodhar (Bobby Deol), 'Yamla Pagla Deewana 2' begins on a completely different note. Dharam and Gajodhar lead extremely comfortable (and dishonest) lives in Benaras, by duping people. Paramveer, meanwhile, is a recovery officer working for a bank in U.K. The conning duo never let the righteous Paramveer know about their misdeeds, and pretend that they are running a flower business in India. 

Dharam and Gajodhar come across a wealthy NRI businessman from U.K., Sir Yograj Khanna (Annu Kapoor), in Benaras, and decide to make him their next target. Dharam persuades Gajodhar to impress Yograj's daughter, Suman (Neha Sharma), and convince her for marriage so that they can acquire all his money. Everything goes as planned till the father-son duo land up in U.K., for the marriage!

Dharam and Gajodhar have to face a few uncomfortable truths during their stay over there, which sets the premise of the film. 

Story-wise, 'Yamla Pagla Deeqana 2' offers something different from the usual fare that is meted out in the 'commercial' cinema space. The screenplay, somehow, manages to do justice to the plot as well. The various twists in the film are well-placed, and move the story along wonderfully. However, the humour, more often than not, lacks the punch. The principal villain Dudeji (Anupam Kher), and his two sidekicks Bunty-Babli (Johnny Lever and Sucheta Khanna), may get overtly slapstick for your comfort. Their side-plot involves the making of a virtual mall (which will consequently become the eighth wonder of the world). In order to acquire land for this mall, Dudeji sends Bunty and Babli to take control of Yograj Khanna's nightclub. Bunty-Babli choose to get into unusual disguises (while taking inspiration from Shah Rukh Khan's 'Don', Sardars, Samurai and the likes) so that nobody recognizes them. There's also an orangutan, Einstein, who befriends Dharam and Gajodhar, and goes on to play a very important part in the story. Johnny-Sucheta's characters, the orang-utan’s antics, and the inclusion of Sumo wrestlers and Ninja fighters, do provide this film with a quirky flavour. However, none of these sequences manage to invoke more than a guffaw. 

The action in the film is all 'Sunny Deol'. Deol can move beyond 'Gadar', but 'Gadar refuses to leave the man. The action is very much similar to what we've been accustomed to see in his films, over the years.

These aforementioned instances do seem like fillers in what was potentially a very good dra-medy! A few of these gags could have been done away with, since they unnecessarily lengthen the duration of the film. 

The film's primary USP is the music (Sharib-Toshi and Sachin Gupta). Songs such as the title track, 'Changli Hai Changli Hai', 'Main Taan Aidaan Hi Nachna' and 'Suit Tera Laal Rang Da', and their excellently-shot-and-choreographed videos, infuse a lot of life and colour into the film. 

The Deols, as expected, deliver exceptional performances in the film. While the hilarious duo of Dharmendra and Bobby Deol have the best dialogues, Sunny pulls off a coup of sorts, managing to perform comedy, action, romance and drama with élan. 

Australian model-turned-actress Kristina Akheeva is extremely impressive for someone who is acting in her first Hindi film. Neha too, impresses with her whole 'Salman Khan-die-hard-fan' act. 

Director Sangeeth Sivan and writer Jasvinder Singh Bath had a great concept at hand. Doing away with a few unneeded gags would have worked wonders for the film. Overall, the film is a half-baked affair, and only die-hard Deol fans will enjoy it!

Shivom Oza