The buzz around the second season of The Family Man indicates that the Amazon Prime Video India show is possibly the most popular work by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK so far. The show builds on some of their strengths – solid scripts, lively characters, great moments and scenes – giving all of these the room to blossom in the hands of that terrific cast over the length of the season. It is the kind of stuff that we have seen in their movies over the years, and in a fresh format for them, it comes together beautifully for the most.
It is because, as far as commercial Hindi cinema goes, these guys are the real deal. They have crafted genuinely good entertainers over the years, their films putting most high-profile Bollywood biggies to shame.
Raj & DK movies often give the impression that the duo understand what the ‘invisible India’ (a phrase I find myself using rather often these days) actually looks like, unlike some of their legacy banner counterparts.
Their limited filmography so far is an exciting one, hits and misses notwithstanding. Here, then, is a ranking of all Raj & DK films to date. Obviously, their big streaming show is not a part of the line-up because it is not a ‘film’, and it would probably just edge out their best film to rank at the top anyway.
Flavors (2003)
There is something quite likeable at the heart of Raj & DK’s first feature, the NRI indie comedy Flavors. Largely revolving around a bunch of young Indians in the US, the film features mostly non-actors, which helps make the characters relatable. And you can already sense that these directors know the importance of the script while making a movie. But apart from the scattered sequences, where the few professional actors in the cast elevate proceedings, there is very little craft on display in the film. You can tell that the filmmakers were untrained and learning on the job. Cinema, after all, is not about pointing the camera towards where the action is. So much hinges on being able to create that action in a world that a viewer can almost touch and feel, even though they are only seeing a two-dimensional image.
What the film does showcase, though, is their ability to create little moments that have an impact, through either social insight or humour. So watching Flavors today is likely to be more of an academic exercise than something one could recommend as a viewing experience. It is a light, breezy film with the kind of look and production value that you have to just ignore, if you want to get through to the end. If it was not for the student-film vibe of Flavors, it could have been higher up than the next film on the list.
A Gentleman: Sundar, Susheel, Risky (2017)
This one is a bit of a confused film. Like Go Goa Gone, it takes a largely ‘non-desi’ concept — covert agents indulging in globe-trotting action — and tries to desi-fy it. It has got a bunch of good-looking people leading the cast, and has a few usual Raj & DK elements, including a local mid-level ‘bhai’ character essayed by the terrific Amit Mistry (who sadly passed away this April). While Mistry played a Delhi bhai in 99 and a Mumbai bhai in Shor in the City, here he is a local Miami bhai.
What Raj & DK do not always succeed with in A Gentleman is walk that tightrope between being a stylised action flick and a relatable pursuit of the exploits of audacious misfits. Most of its thrill is predicated on one single plot twist that attempts to bring the narratives together. To be fair, the film is not a half-bad streaming watch because of the directors’ penchant for creating at least some gratifying moments, but considering its scale and potential, it is rather underwhelming by Raj & DK standards. (That said, I can listen to ‘Bandook Meri Laila’ all the livelong day.)
Glitch - segment from anthology film Unpaused (2020)
Is it possible for a hypochondriac and a frontline healthcare worker to fall in love? That is the kind of premise which would be intriguing in any world, but in Glitch, this odd love story happens during the COVID-30 pandemic. Yes, a decade from now, worldwide virus attacks basically are a matter of routine, in the universe of this film.
Even though Glitch is decidedly kooky, it has got the kind of beguiling humour that can slip under the radar. The budding romance between the two characters in the film – ‘hypo’ Ahan (Gulshan Devaiah, in a knockout role) and ‘warrior’ Ayesha (Saiyami Kher) – are the kind that deserve a full length story to explore and do justice. Amid an anthology that did not really create waves overall, and in which one segment was clearly hailed over the others, this is actually the one that could have been. Even if you keep Raj & DK’s propensity of reinvigorating the mainstream in mind, this one is quite left-field, in a good way.
Happy Ending (2014)
It pains me to put what is perhaps my personal favourite Raj & DK picture in fourth place, but there is a fatal design flaw in this film. That is the only reason that this smart, subversive, self-aware movie does not get the credit that it deserves. But first, let me talk about the good great stuff.
Saif Ali Khan’s Yudi and Ileana D’Cruz’s Aanchal are absolutely sparkling when they are together, bouncing off each other as they discover how much they like and annoy one other. Apart from Aanchal, we see Yudi with some of his exes, and every one of those relationships showcases that this pair treats female characters far better than most of their peers. They set up stereotypes and then gently break them. And Govinda’s track is an audacious but earnest, well-intentioned takedown of Bollywood and its superstar culture.
I would say that of all the films in the hyper-specific sub-genre that is the ‘breezy, urban rom-com where Saif Ali Khan plays a beta version of himself,' Happy Ending is probably the best of the lot. In a world where the only two films of this kind were Dil Chahta Hai and Happy Ending, the latter would have become a cult classic as well.
Unfortunately, between these two films came —hold your breath — Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein, Na Tum Jaano Na Hum, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Hum Tum, Salaam Namaste, Ta Ra Rum Pum, Love Aaj Kal, Cocktail, and possibly a few more not worth mentioning. And therein lies that fatal flaw - intense déjà vu, even though Happy Ending is easily richer in nuance, better crafted, and more gratifying than any of these. As much as I hate to say it, that script needed someone other than Saif as Yudi, for it to reach its true potential as a movie. (The irony is that no one else could probably pull it off the way he did.)
Go Goa Gone (2013)
Zombie comedy set in Goa; zany enough to be fresh for Hindi cinema, but adapted with relatable desi-ness for maximum effect; Go Goa Gone may not be a perfect film, but there is not too much wrong with it either — apart from just perhaps the lack of originality. Zombies, after all, have been done to death (so to speak).
The only reason this Raj & DK film does not rank higher is because there are some outstanding zom-coms out there in the world, that could give this film a bit of a complex. Still, just let all the niggles slide, and it is a film that is hard not to enjoy. Kunal Kemmu is in fine form as always, contributing with dialogue as well. Producer Saif turning up as the desi-wannabe-Russian drug dealer is the blonde icing on the cake.
99 (2009)
For Raj & DK, the jump from their first film to their second film is remarkable. Sure, a lot of it has to do with cinematographer Rajeev Ravi — one of the best we have — and that terrific cast, led by Kemmu and Boman Irani. What this bunch has done in the film deserves a whole other piece.
But already, you begin to see Raj & DK represent an India in the film that was rarely seen in commercial Hindi movies before. Add to that, some crackling, often unexpected dialogue; and the whole cricket match-fixing angle used in the film (heavily inspired by real events) — what you get is an immensely entertaining film that you can keep going back to.
99 has a most endearing riff on the age-old Mumbai-versus-Delhi polemic as one of its themes, even as its caper film shenanigans relentlessly twist and turn back around on itself. The only reason it is not ranked at the top of this list is because it is so much longer than the one that is. 99 should have taken its title a little more seriously, because those many minutes would have been the perfect length for this film.
Shor in the City (2011)
Few Hindi films of the 21st century have captured the essence of Bombay the way Raj & DK’s breakout hit Shor in the City did. Noise, colour, hustle, energy, grime, crime, cricket, and visarjan — you name a quintessential Bombay element, and it is embodied in the film.
But amid all the sound and fury, the movie makes room for tender moments — like the newly-married chawl-inhabiting couple discovering each other from scratch, eventually finding unlikely common ground in reading books. You will find a number of Raj & DK staples in Shor in the City — multiple storylines that eventually find themselves intertwining in big and small ways, oddball characters spouting cackle-worthy dialogue, glimpses of the kind of people who often go unseen in real life as well as in cinema, the works.
But the one big factor that has contributed heavily to their commercial success made its presence felt for the first time in this film — the ability to deliver at least a couple of chartbusting songs in every soundtrack. The music by Sachin-Jigar enhances the sensory effect of all that Bombay imagery, making this possibly their most complete film yet.
The Family Man Seson 2will release on Amazon Prime Video on 4 June.
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All images from YouTube.
source https://www.firstpost.com/entertainment/as-the-family-man-season-2-releases-ranking-raj-dks-genre-hopping-filmography-from-99-to-go-goa-gone-9677111.html
