Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron

Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron

http://sakshijuneja.com/blog/?p=185

In my opinion, this movie could be considered a ‘cult’ for Comedy movies. It enjoys the absolutely unique distinction of being among the top three films of any Indian who has seen it. That is what a real classic is.

Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron had a dream cast. The acting was spontaneous and the comic timing was perfect. Shah and Baswani shared an amazing tuning. Pankaj Kapur's unapologetic dishonesty balanced Satish Kaushik's clumsiness. Bhakti Barve's ice maiden act was convincing. Also, Satish Shah made one hell of a dead body.

Naseeruddin Shah and Ravi Basvani made a wonderfully contrasting pair of idealistic but amateur sleuths who are out of depths in the real India. But the film was stolen by two of the most talented, and greatly under-utilised, comic actors this country has. Om Puri as a lecherous Punjabi contractor Ahuja, and Pankaj Kapur as the sophisticated Punjabi contractor Tarneja. They just have to be watched again and again.

The main high-light has to be the ‘Mahabharat’ scene. Again and again, for lines such as ‘Yeh kya ho raha hai’ and ‘Shaant Gadaadhaari Bheem, shaant!’ strike an almost too high comic note. This scene is also a masterly parody of, and dialogue with, the North Indian nautanki and filmic tradition, as various periods, genres, stories and cultures flow into each other. The ‘cheer-haran’ scene of Mahabharat suddenly becomes Salim’s confrontation with Akbar in Mughal-e-Azam. Even just thinking about the scene, I can’t hold myself from laughing out loud.

Just recollecting these classic one-liners is enough to tickle the funny bone:

* Shaant gadadhari Bheem shaant.

* Nahi, Draupadi jaisi Sati nari ko dekhkar maine cheer haran ka idea drop kar diya hai. Jai ho, aisi Sati nari ki jai ho.

* Yeh sab kya ho raha hai?

* Bhaiya, yeh aap keh rahein hai? (drastic change of tone) Abbe sale, kehde cheer harne ko.

* Draupadi tere akele ki nahi hai. Hum sab shareholder hain.

* Magar bade bhai ke vachchan ki aagya ka palan karna hi padegaAhuja: Kyun?Abbe natak main aisa likha hai.Ahuja: Palan to humne kabhi apne baap ki aagya ka nahi kiya. Tu cheez kya hai?

* Dhanush tod diya. Teen rupaye ka nuksaan kar diya. Main nahi karta natak watak. Bhaad mein jao tum sab.

* Nalayak, adharmi, durachari, vamachari, bhrasthachari, bol sorry! Apne sasur ko nahi pehchante? Main hoon Draupadi ka baap, Dhrupad.

* This is too much. Yeh Akbar kahan se aa gaya?

Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron didn't end on happy or hopeful note. But it worked. The entire film was a non-stop laughathon.

There was not a single song in the film. But Vanraj Bhatia's fine background score moved in perfect rhythm with the film's swift pace. The zingy beats reflected the duo's adventure; the gentle violin suggested a hint of possible romance between Vinod and Shobhaji.