Phir Aayi Haseen Dillruba Review: A Fun Sequel That's Too Messy

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Published: Fri 9 Aug 2024, 11:26 PM

Last updated: Fri 9 Aug 2024, 11:27 PM

Starring : Taapsee Pannu, Vikrant Massey, Sunny Kaushal, Jimmey Shergill

Directed by : Jayprasad Desai

Rating : 3 stars

Kanika Dhillon is a bollywood screenwriter (and co-producer of this film) whose career trajectory has been rather interesting. The way she writes her female leads needs particular mention. Some of her better works, including Manmarziyaan, Kedarnath and Haseen Dillruba, feature strong women who are unapologetic about their desires, selfish in their actions and atypical in their morality. While such portrayals may polarise viewers, they make her characters messy, albeit unpredictable and layered.

This is precisely why Haseen Dillruba, released on Netflix in 2021, made for such a compelling viewing. It was not a great movie but for a change, we saw an Indian small town where a married woman in a loveless marriage makes no bones about her infatuation for a hottie, has an affair with him only to get embroiled in big trouble resulting in a murder. The plot was deranged and crazy, with the leads being guided by pulp fiction writer Dinesh Pandit's campy novels. The fun fact: the star-crossed murderers and lovers actually get away with it!

In the sequel that has just dropped on Netflix, Dhillon and director Jayprad Desai amp up the 'pulp' element to give us a movie that is twisted, complex and fun, yet ultimately underwhelming.

Taking off from where the previous one ended, Phir Aayi Haseen Dillruba has Rani Kashyap (Taapsee Pannu) living in Agra after the horrible incident in which her husband Rishu (Vikrant Massey) kills her lover-turned-blackmailer (played by Harshvardhan Rane) and goes into hiding. Rishu and Rani are madly in love and meet clandestinely, hatching a plan to escape India forever. The best laid plans, of course, go awry since the police are still hot on their heels.

The suspicions of a strict cop who is, incidentally, Rishu's relative (Jimmy Shergill) complicates matters further. Enter a moony-eyed simpleton compounder Abhimanyu (Sunny Kaushal) who falls hook, line and sinker for Rani the moment he sees her. Rani does not reciprocate but decides to use him for her needs – to reunite and run away with Rishu. What follows is a diabolical plan that doesn't quite go the way it's supposed to.

Phir Aayi... has all the elements of a twisted thriller. Love, lies, betrayals, murders, cops and er... crocodiles (watch the movie to know what role these creatures have to play). However, the film's failing is that these ingredients don't come together as a whole. There is enough to keep you amused but not enough to keep you engrossed.

In thrillers, writers often feel they need to add a twist at every turn when that's really not the case. A few surprises and red herrings make for great viewing but when the twists become too twisted, the fun gets killed. This is what happens in Phir Aayi... What starts off as entertaining and unhinged soon becomes unbelievable and unintentionally funny. Also, a lot of the plot points are just plain convenient and stretch incredulity.

Yet, there are a few flourishes that give hints of smart writing. For instance, Rani, who is a beautician, has an assistant calling her about a potential crisis involving a wrongly applied hair colour. Main dirty blonde lagana chahti thi, par slutty red laga diya (I wanted to apply dirty blonde but used slutty red) – a subtle dig perhaps at not just weirdly-named cosmetics but also the morality of the lead character. Another scene that stood out was Rani and Rishu making a dangerous escape plan while seated in ferris wheel. It's as hilarious as it's warped. The love and lust simmering underneath the calm in Tier 2 India is quite delightfully captured here too as it was in the earlier film.

Fortunately, the actors are up for the part. Taapsee continues to play the seductress well with her clingy saris and glam blouses though co-star Vikrant Massey looks way too 'nice' to be convincing as a madly-in-love husband who is willing to kill again for his wife. Jimmy Shergill is solid but a poorly sketched role has his character make a great impression in the beginning only to inexplicably lose the plot where he has to be led to the conclusion by the very people he's chasing.

Sunny Kaushal is a surprise package. Endearing as the smitten lover, he gives the creeps when his past and real motives are revealed. Kaushal plays Abhimanyu with relish and comes across as a competent actor who can go a long way in Bollywood.

The real hero of the film is Dinesh Pandit – a fictional writer who gets quoted way too often. It is Pandit whose books – most probably sold on railway platforms and on the streets – are practically lived by Rani, Rishu and Abhimanyu as they derive their strange plans from his works.

If Haseen Dillruba is to get a Part 3, Kanika Dhillon should give Mr Pandit a full-fledged role.

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