Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota

Reviewer's Summary - Fine

Language: Hindi
Year: July 21, 2006 in the U.S.
Actors: Konkona Sen Sharma, Paresh Rawal, Irfaan Khan, Ankur Khanna, Ayesha Takia, Jimmy Shergill, Karan Khanna, Ratna Pathak, Suhasini Mulay
Director: Naseeruddin Shah
Producer: Shabbir Boxwala
Music: Viju Shah
Lyrics: Sameer
Story: Uttam Gada

Just as we were despairing about the mostly pitiful crop of Bollywood films assaulting all our senses, comes along a fine movie like Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota.

This engaging movie oozes a certain charm that we've seldom seen in Bollywood.

The allure of Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota lies in its offbeat story. A story that strays far from the usual Bollywood tripe of five songs-four fights-three-dances.

In a Bollywood rarity, with Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Besides the unusual story, fine acting by the main characters, crisp dialogs and deft direction by actor extraordinaire Naseeruddin Shah add up to an unusually entertaining ensemble.

Marking Naseeruddin Shah's debut as a director, Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota is the story of four characters, who unbeknownst to each other are destined to share a similar fate in the end. The principal characters don't know each other and don't even meet. Their stories run in parallel.

Played with much aplomb, the four characters are an organizer of foreign shows Rajubhai (Paresh Rawal), poor medical student Rahul Bhide (Ankur Khanna), the newly married bride Tilottima Punj (Konkona Sen Sharma) and stockbroker Salim (Irfaan Khan).

Rajubhai is heading to the U.S on yet another of his shows, this time taking along with him the wide-eyed, inncocent Payal (Shahana Goswami), daughter of his old love Tara (Ratna Pathak Shah). Largely due to the encouragement of his rich friend Khushboo (Ayesha Takia), whom he secretly pines for, Rahul is reluctantly going to the U.S for his post graduate studies.

Salim is already in New York, having left in a hurry after he and his brother unwittingly get entangled in the murder of a police officer Paul (Bomman Irani)

Tilottima, who is being driven crazy by her insecure mother-in-law and crazy sister-in-law, is leaving for the U.S. to join her husband after fraudulently obtaining a tourist visa.

Rajubhai and his daughter, Rahul and Tillottima land in Boston and are supposed to take the connecting flight to Los Angeles, the next morning. Only, the next morning is 9/11/2001.

Meanwhile, Salim ends up on the 95th floor of World Trade Center in downtown Manhattan on the morning of 9/11 waiting for a family friend, who's promised to help him get a job in Columbus, Ohio.

Moments before she can board the flight to L.A., Tilottima loses her boarding pass. It's in these few minutes, as she runs helter skelter frenetically searching for her boarding pass, that Konkana's acting prowess comes into display.

As dazzled as we were by Paresh Rawal, Irfaan Khan and Ankur Khanna, we were completely bowled over by Konkona Sen Sharma. Konkona delighted us with her extraordinary portrayal of a jilted schizophrenic girl in 15 Park Avenue. She delights us again. The girl is a walking, talking acting lesson to her peers.

After watching hundreds of dispiritingly commonplace Bollywood movie, Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota leaves us with some hope that all's not lost in the Bollywood cesspool of mediocrity.

Here are some wallpapers/pix:

The runaway bride
Tilottima Punj (Kokona Sensharma) is on top of the world because she's married Hemant (Jimmy Sheirgill), who she met and loved through the Net. In spite of their sizzling chemistry; their honeymoon is cut short because he has to return to his job in the US. Now Tilottima will do what it takes – fight with ma-in-law, lie to the immigration officer – just to wing her way back into her husband's arms.

The fugitive stockbroker
Salim Rajabali (Irrfan Khan) is the stockbroker son of a Godmother. He's besotted by the much older but sensuous Namrata (Suhasini Mulay). Even as he involuntarily gets involved in a killing, he discovers that she has been cheating on him. Before the shattered man can gather his wits, his mother (Saroj Khan) forces him to pack his bags and flee the country before he's implicated further.

The excited student
Rahul Bhide (Ankur Khanna) is a brilliant but poor student who's already got admission into a prestigious university abroad. But he's hardly excited, nor appears to be too keen on going because of a lack of funds and an incapacitated father. Almost overnight, almost magically, all his problems get sorted out and he finds himself flying out to a brighter future.

The uncomplicated showman
Rajubhai Patel (Paresh Raval) is a small time organizer of foreign shows. To be a part of his show will cost an aspiring dancer/singer a few cool lakhs. But nobody is complaining, least of all, Rajubhai. Till old flame Tara (Ratna Pathak Shah) has to mortgage her house to pay him the money to take her only daughter into his show. And so the seasoned and hardened Rajubhai finds himself fathering a wide eyed, innocent girl on her first trip abroad.

Four people? Tilottima, Salim, Rahul and Rajubhai from four disparate worlds of dissimilar backgrounds?

Four people with distinct hopes and diverse motives...

Yet their lives are entwined?

For fate has randomly selected them to play their assigned roles in one of the most horrific events of recent times? Where one fell stroke, one chilling moment will alter destinies, shatter lives and affect generations and four lives will change forever.

When an actor of the calibre of Naseeruddin Shah decides to perch on the director's chair, you track the directorial debut with interest. It's an instant reaction since Naseer is one of the finest actors in the country who has been associated with qualitative projects since the past three decades.

Another aspect that goes against the film is that portions of the film have been treated with a touch of realism and at times, the commercial aspect takes over. Agreed, the stories are identifiable and the characters are those that we encounter in our day-to-day life, but it's the treatment that has its limitations.

sry but it seems a little weird

thankzzz forrrr sharrriinggg 👏 👏 👏