Director: Priyadarshan
Producer: Raman Maroo
Banner: Shemaroo
Music: Vidyasagar
Lyrics: Sameer
Star Cast: Akshay Khanna, Paresh Rawal, Genelia D’Souza, Shobhana, Rajpal Yadav, Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Archana Puran Singh
Mere Baap Pehle Aap has released and the verdict is out. The film is a complete washout and definitely not worth spending money on the tickets of a multiplex. It is better to wait for the VCD/DVD to come out. Though the basic premise behind the movie, that of a son trying to rekindle the long-lost romance of his widowed father, is good, it has not been properly exploited. Throughout the first half of the film, the story hardly seems to be there. It is only during the second that some significance is given to the main theme.
Mere Baap Pehle Aap starts with a scene in which Om Puri is lustily looking at bikini-clad Mumait Khan and other semi-clad girls like her, frolicking at the beach. It looks much like the starter to a B-grade film, without raising even the slightest of laughs. Then, we have to endure the scenes where Paresh Rawal and his friend Om Puri are searching for a bride for the latter, end up being arrested by Archana Puran Singh and are rescued by Akshay Khanna. If that wasn’t enough, the sequence also finds repetitions in the film.
It is only towards the second half that story starts to build a little, with Akshay meeting Genelia and also discovering about his father’s old romance, Shobhana. The scenes between Paresh and Akshay, exuding some great chemistry, are the ones that keep you going. Then, the parallel love story of Akshay and Genelia also provides you with solace. However, the sub-plot about Rane’s second son and his dominating wife seems to have been put in just for the heck of it and serves no real purpose.
The dialogues, with the exception of a few, are not at all up to the mark and even the editor could have done a better job. Talking about performances, Om Puri has been totally wasted, while Paresh Rawal did not get a chance to explore his potential fully. Akshay Khanna is good and Archana Puran Singh manages to bring a few laughs. As for Genelia, she brings freshness to the movie, but needs to work on her expressions. Shobana is also effective in her role. Talking about Rajpal Yadav, exactly what was he in the film for?
Mere Baap Pehle Aap Pre-release Review
The funny ride seems to be on full throttle these days. Bollywood has come up with another comedy flick, ‘Mere Baap Pehle Aap’.Directed by Priyadarshan, the movie is due for release in end-May or early-June 2008. It has been produced by Raman Maroo and will be released under the banner of ‘Shemaroo’. The music of Vidyasagar has been combined with Sameer’s lyrics. The star cast of the ‘Mere Baap Pehle Aap’ includes Akshay Khanna, Paresh Rawal, Genelia D’Souza, Rajpal Yadav, Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Archana Puran Singh.
Paresh is a father of two boys, Manoj and Akshay. Having lost his wife years back, he single-handedly brings up his sons. Cut to present, Manoj gets married and is completed dominated by his wife and her parents. He runs a matrimonial agency, which has been started by his wealthy in-laws and lives separately. Akshay lives with his father and, along with him, manages a mall as well as the house perfectly. There is only a slight problem; Akshay cares about his father too much, to the point of treating him like his son.
He fears that his father might get spoilt and because of the reason, doesn’t like the latter’s mingling with Om Puri. Om is a divorcee who desperately wants to get married and in the process, often finds himself in the lock-up, along with Paresh. Every time, it is Akshay who comes to the aid of the friends. Still, life is fun and probably would have continued to be the same, if one particular incident would not have happened. Akshay starts receiving telephones and couriers from an ex-classmate, who claims that Akshay promised to marry her.
Ultimately, it is revealed that the female is Genelia, who suffered ragging at the hands of Akshay, during engineering college days. She happens to have come down from abroad, for a friend’s marriage, and soon becomes a very good friend of Akshay. Genelia gels well with Paresh also and soon, she introduces the father-son duo to her teacher, with whom she is staying. While Akshay starts liking the soft motherly gait of the teacher, Paresh seems to have fallen in love with her. In no time, his whole wardrobe starts showing a lot of changes.
He also starts becoming increasingly absent from the mall. Akshay starts becoming inquisitive and soon, comes to know of the love story of his father. In the yesteryears, Paresh and the teacher were in love with each other and even ran away from home. However, they got caught and were separated. As they met again, the love surfaced once again, only this time, they are too shy to express their feelings. Now, Akshay and Genelia start on the mission of uniting Paresh and the teacher, with Om Puri’s help. What follows is a riot of laughs.
