Unlike the tired Bollywood slapstick, this adaptation of Mrs Doubtfire sets a new standard for comedy films.

Movie: Chachi 420
Director: Kamalahasan
Cast: Kamalahasan, Amrish Puri, Om Puri, Tabu, Johnny Walker

By Anupama Chopra

So far Chachi 420 has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. First producer Kamalahasan fired director Shantanu Sheorey and the two former friends accused each other of incompetence in reams of newsprint. Then actress Ashwini Bhave stomped out complaining that she had been ill-treated. And finally a slew of articles appeared alleging that Kamalahasan was a control freak who concentrated only on himself. The good news is that all the heartburn didn't affect the final product. Chachi 420 is an exuberant entertainer.

Kamalahasan makes his directorial debut by default -- he was forced to take up the reins after Sheorey left. But he expertly juggles his duties as director-producer-scriptwriter with inch-thick make-up, shaved legs and foam breasts, creating the outrageously funny desi Mrs Doubtfire. The Robin Williams film about a divorced man who disguises himself as a nanny in his former wife's home in order to be close to his kids is the take-off point for Kamalahasan's script. But unlike other filmmakers, Kamalahasan hasn't stolen; he's adapted. The idea isn't original but the scripting is.

So the hero is an assistant dance director who falls in love with the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. The two elope and get married. But problems crop up and they end up in divorce court. Unable to bear being separated from his daughter, the director gets a make-up artist friend to gear him up and present himself at his former wife's door as the new governess. It's a near-perfect arrangement -- except that his father-in-law falls in love with him as does his landlord.

Chachi is sparklingly well-written and enacted. Gulzar's dialogue has wit and vitality. It's a more genteel, charming comedy, quite unlike the standard Bollywood slapstick. And the characters are perfectly cast: Amrish Puri as the rich, scheming father who falls in love with Chachi; Om Puri as his married-to-his-cellphone assistant; Paresh Rawal as the Gujarati landlord who also wants Chachi; and Johnny Walker making a comeback as a drunk make-up artist.

But like most Kamalahasan movies, Chachi 420 is primarily a showcase for the star. Like in Hindustani, some scenes seem inserted merely to display his multifarious talents. Tabu looks ethereal but is forced to play the film's most ill-defined character. The other heroine, Ayesha Jhulka, barely registers. But these are minor quibbles. Chachi 420 is vigorous fun. Kamalahasan take a bow.

A Big Yawn

A film that fails to take off.

Movie: Aflatoon
Director: Guddu Dhanoa
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Anupam Kher, Urmillai Matondkar and Sharzia Malik

By Anupama Chopra

You know you're in movie hell when the most interesting items in a tale of love, intrigue and blackmail are the heroine's clothes. But as director Guddu Dhanoa's Aflatoon congeals into a unwieldy mess, the one thing that holds you are Urmilla Matondkar's clothes. She changes about 40 times -- and after a while, the plot becomes incidental. All that matters is, what will Urmi wear next?

The plot had potential. A two-bit hood, with dreams of becoming a millionaire, cons a rich heiress into an affair, only to discover that the girl's father is actually a pauper. In the hands of a better director, it might have worked but Dhanoa creates an incoherent film. The first half is almost entirely devoted to the hero patoing the heroine. Then the action takes over. But Dhanoa's idea of suspense is feeble and the bad scripting and even worse acting doesn't help. Akshay Kumar, who can barely do one role with conviction, is forced to carry two. He tries hard to be a good baddie, even stealing from Jack Nicholson's classic Joker performance in Batman. The rest of the gang -- Anupam Kher playing the blackmailed father, Shazia Malik as the moll -- sleepwalk. Aflatoon is well-dressed tedium.

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