Bala
Year: 2019
Director: Amar Kaushik
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar, Yami Gautam

Just a few days ago, while reviewing Dream Girl, I wrote: “A North Indian small-town youngster with a quirky secret to hide. Ayushmann Khurrana has made a successful career out of this formula.”

I can’t think of a better line while beginning ‘Bala’ review! Same formula, same result!

What is the plot?

A smart witty young man (Ayushmann Khurrana) who, when he is not selling beauty products, dabbles in stand-up comedy, has one major regret. He is fast losing his hair, and this has made him a mental wreck. His loyal friends and family members try to shore up his spirits by suggesting and even participating in all sorts of wacky ‘hair-growing’ tricks. As every hair-‘raising’ formula fails, he cannot even bear to look at his balding pate. Snubs at workplace, and failed marriage proposals make him don a wig to win the heart of a dazzling damsel (Yami Gautam), a local model and a Tiktok video-sensation. Unfortunately, his ‘top’ secret is bound to come unstuck, if his irate ex-classmate (Bhumi Pednekar), still smarting from his childhood insults over her dark complexion, decides to pay him back in the same coin!

What’s hot?

The core strengths of Bala are Niren Bhatt-Ravi Muppa’s fantastic screenplay and Amar Kaushik’s surefooted direction, which not only do insightfully present a balding young man’s psychosocial travails but also take a broader look at how society’s discriminatory, demeaning body-shaming ways scar so many sensitive minds. More importantly the film presents the theme in a lighthearted manner, without turning too serious or preachy.

The North Indian small-town ethos and lingo are depicted with authenticity. Well-etched characters, well-observed situations and well-written dialogues all gel well to make it a fine entertainer.

Ayushmann portrays the lead character with total conviction and sensitivity. He manages to perfectly capture the inner turmoil of a prematurely balding young man. His make-up artiste too deserves a pat on the back for giving him such unbelievably believable balding look.

Like most of Ayushmann’s hit films, this film too features so many notable side-performances. Yami Gautam as an over the top beauty-cum-drama queen, Bhumi Pednekar as the dark-skinned (Horrible makeover!) activist lawyer, Saurabh Shukla as hero’s bald father, Seema Pahwa as the neighborly hirsute aunty, and Javed Jaafrey and Abhishek Bannerjee as hero’s best buddies leave their mark on the proceedings.

What’s not?

The film does have its moments of weakness. The childhood episodes about body-shaming seem manipulatively melodramatic. Even later in the film, sometimes the track becomes repetitive.

Verdict

Ayushmann Khurrana has turned into a champion of the underdog through his conscious choices about picking realistic flawed characters facing some common yet seldom-discussed problems. He has become the shining beacon of sensible, sensitive middle-class, middle-path cinema. His innings is almost reminiscent of Amol Palekar playing a middle-class hero in Basu Chatterjee or Hrishikesh Mukherjee-films of the late 1970s.

The continued box-office success of his films, (None of which is a big budget spectacle!), is a testimony that he has managed to touch the chord in the common man’s heart. More power to him and his brand of cinema!

Rating

3.5 Stars