Dedh Ishqiya
Year: 2014
Director: Abhishek Chaube
Cast: Naseeruddin Shah, Arshad Warsi, Madhuri Dixit, Huma Qureshi, Vijay Raaz

The 2010- film Ishqiya was one hatke film, a brilliantly written-directed-and-acted crime caper; a subtle dark comedy. Naturally my curiosity was piqued when the sequel was announced with Madhuri Dixit and Huma Qureshi in the new cast. How does this second coming of Ishqiya work out? Titled as Dedh Ishqiya, is it really half a step ahead of its predecessor?

What’s the plot?

Once again, the khaalu Iftikar (Naseeruddin Shah) and bhaanja Babban (Arshad Warsi) crook- team has botched up a robbery mission assigned to them. Running away from their perpetual nemesis gang-lord (Salman Sheikh), the nephew finds his missing uncle masquerading as a poetic nawab at a mushaira in a nearby town. The local nawab’s widow (Madhuri Dixit) has organized the poetry do, promising to marry the winning poet and the uncle-turned-shaair nawab has thrown his hat into the fray, much to the chagrin of the local hoodlum MLA (Vijay Raaz), who himself is aspiring for the widow’s hand. The perplexed nephew meanwhile gets smitten by the rich lady’s bold and beautiful assistant (Huma Qureshi). While all these men and women are trying to get their pound of…love, a devious kidnapping plot is cooking up in the background. What will that dark and dangerous act do to all these lovelorn characters?

What’s hot?

·         Dedh Ishqiya is full of wonderful acting. Arshad Warsi as the affable ruffian, Naseeruddin Shah as the polished crime veteran, Madhuri as the regal yet vulnerable widow, Huma as the perky helping hand, Vijay Raaz as the love-crazed hoodlum, Manoj Pahwa as the chained poet and Salman Sheikh as the pesky gang-lord --- all deliver memorable performances.

·         The North Indian crime scenario and the crumbling Haveli culture have been beautifully captured; but it must be stated that these things have now started to feel repetitive in the wake of films like Sahib Bibi Gangster and Bullet Raja.

·         There are flashes of brilliance in the way Abhishek Chaube deals with the undercurrent of black comedy in the plot. It is wry subtle dark humor at its best!

·         As a director, Chaube also does well to tastefully capture some tender and some raw romantic moments.

·         Vishal Bhardwaj’s music lends a touch of class.

What’s not?

·         The film cruises smoothly for the first one third part, then stutters and slows down in the next one third but thankfully recovers well to finish strongly with a zany climax.

Verdict

Dedh Ishqiya has a lot going for it- good humor, great performances and more than capable direction. But it certainly suffers in comparison with the original, which had much more fire, passion and intrigue, mainly thanks to Vidya Balan’s standout mind-blowing performance. This time around, it is more of a team-play which is very good but lacks that wow factor! That’s why, in my opinion, Dedh Ishqiya remains half a step behind Ishqiya!

Rating

3.5 stars