The fun filled comedy Welcome directed by Anees Bazmee, ‘welcomes’ the audience in the theaters today. The movie is a complete roller coaster ride, tickling your funny bone till the time you twist and turn in your seats, holding your tummy. The mantra of the movie and the director is that you lock your brains at home and throw your worries out of the window and enter the rib tickling and crazy world fabricated by the extremely talented star cast of Welcome. 

The story revolves around Uday Shetty (Nana Patekar), Majnu (Anil Kapur) and their boss Sikander (Feroz Khan), who are Hong Kong-based comic thugs. All of them are keen to get Sanjana (Katrina Kaif), Uday’s sister, married into a respectable family. Hope knocks the door when they meet the handsome bachelor Rajiv [Akshay Kumar], which they realize is the perfect match for Sanjana.

 

On the other hand, Sanjana is completely ignorant of her brother’s plans and meets Rajiv separately, to fall in love with her. Rajiv’s Uncle, Ghunghroo (Paresh Rawal) is unaware of Sanjana’s background and accepts her initially. However, the story takes a turn when Ghunghroo realizes his mistake and opposes the marriage. Suddenly, Ishika (Mallika Sherawat) enters the scene, claiming to be the wife of Rajiv. Clamor and confusion grips the story, leaving the viewer tangled.

 

The movie, Welcome begins on a happy note with several funny incidences in the first half. The second half of the movie unveils some surprises as well, following the mood of the film. However, the pace is comparatively slow in the post interval session and some jokes may even seem repetitive. The music of the film is average and could have been better to impel it on viewer’s lips. Switching over to direction, credit goes to Bazmee for making the movie interesting and crisp, keeping the humor intact, wherein you burst into laughter at many places.

 

The star cast of the film is simply incredible, with each actor living up to his name. Nana Patekar steals the show and is a delight to watch. The versatility of the hero is commendable as he plays the unconventional light hearted role, in contrast to the intense roles he is known for. The emerging Bollywood king and role model, Akshay Kumar is as good as ever. He gives tough competition to Nana, mesmerizing audience in all his scenes. Without exaggeration, Welcome surely adds another feather in his cap.

 

Anil Kapur has completely lived up to the expectation of the masses, complimenting Nana, superbly. Paresh Rawal steals all hearts, with his superb sense of humor and perfect timing. Though Katrina does not get to display much of her acting charms, she still looks bewitching. On the other hand, Mallika is as hot as ever, oozing out with confidence and sending shivers. Firoz Khan looks young and in full form.

 

To wrap it up, Welcome is a fun ride, packed with mischievous jokes, powerful performances and tons of laughter, to leave you asking for more. The audience is sure expected to welcome the movie with open arms. This can even be speculated by the huge opening the movie has received. Thus, for an amusing weekend and a delightful Christmas, catch Welcome at the theaters near you, as it surely promises you will not miss Santa’s laughter.

 

Produced by Firoz A. Nadiadwala and directed by Aneez Bazmee, the soon-to-be released Bollywood film, Welcome is an out and out comedy. And its cast comprises Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Paresh Rawal, Nana Patekar, Anil Kapoor, Mallika Sherawat and Feroz Khan. The music of this movie is composed by three musicians - Himesh Reshammiya, Anand Raj Anand and Sajid Wajid.

 

Rajiv, a handsome and straight man, played by Akshay Kumar is the hero. He falls instantly in love with the sweet and lovely Sanjana (Katrina Kaif) upon meeting her on a cruise. Their love story moves on smoothly until its time to tie the knot. The three Hong-Kong based comic mobsters, Uday Shetty (Nana Patekar) and Majnubhai (Anil Kapoor) along with their boss Sikander (Firoz Khan) are all eager to see their sister Sanjana happily married to Rajiv. 

 

But this marriage proposal is not acceptable to the highly respectable doctor, Dr Ghungroo played by Paresh Rawal who is Rajiv’s uncle. He wants a bride who’s not only very pretty, but also from a very respectable well-to-do family for Rajiv. The situation takes a comic twist when Dr Ghungroo unwittingly meets Sanjana and finds her quite amiable. He realizes his blunder later on, but it’s difficult to retrace steps now. 

 

The situation takes an unusual turn with the sudden entry of Mallika Sherawat who claims to the fiancée of Akshay Kumar i.e. Rajiv. Mallika is known as Ishika in the movie. She has the ability to set many a heart aflutter. And one of those who get thunderstruck by seeing her is the soft-hearted Majnubhai. In order to know what happens in the end, watch out for the release of this hilarious comedy on 21 December 2007. Welcome has been shot in Dubai and India.