Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video Movie Review Rating:
Star Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Triptii Dimri, Vijay Raaz, Mallika Sherawat, Archana Puran Singh, Tiku Talsania
Director: Raaj Shandilyaa
What’s Good: The one-liners and the pre-climax madness
What’s Bad: The incorporation of too many elements and the st-r-e-e-t-c-hed climax!
Loo Break: Yes, especially in the climax!
Watch or Not?: If you like being brainless, relaxing, and enjoying entertainment, then yes!
Language: Hindi
Available On: Theatrical release
Runtime: 153 Minutes
User Rating:
Vicky (Rajkummar Rao) and Vidya (Triptii Dimri) like each other but are a class apart. Vidya is a doctor (in the movie, we do not see her treat a single patient or even offer medical advice!), and Vicky is a professional mehndi-artiste. After they get married in the holy town of Rishikesh, they defy the tradition of newlyweds seeking the blessings of Vaishno Mata and instead proceed on a honeymoon to Goa, which is unknown to their families. They even shoot their romantic video there and decide to play them when they return home.
That night, their “viewing” on the video CD player (it is 1997) is interrupted by a visit from Vicky’s grandfather (Tiku Talsania). Later, the house is robbed. The VCD player is also stolen, along with multiple other things, and all hell breaks loose, especially for Vicky and Vidya, as the player has the video CD within it!
Meanwhile, Vicky’s errant sister, Chanda (Mallika Sherawat), who has run away to become a heroine in Mumbai, returns home, where the maid (Archana Patel) is named Chanda! And when the local inspector, Laadle (Vijay Raaz), comes to investigate the theft and sees the sister, he falls for her, while the maid falls for him. The rest of the film is about how Vicky and Vidya desperately hunt for their precious video. And about all the assorted characters who come in, from cops to criminals.
Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video Movie Review: Script Analysis
The script (by director Raaj Shandilyaa and Yusuf Ali Khan, who have written the story along with Ishrat Khan and Rajan Agarwal) is initially humorous and crazy. However, there are places where time is wasted in sequences that have no real connection with the plot. The dramatic opening sequence of Vicky going to end his life is explained in the second half, and no, it’s neither a dream sequence nor imagination. The Vidya marriage sequence is fun, though, and I loved Manjot Singh as the prospective Sikh groom.
The first half’s sole “imagination” sequence is meant to add fun, and Triptii shines in it. In the second half, some sequences, like the cop wooing Chanda, look incongruous, especially with Brother Vicky’s entry. The addition of the three comic criminals, Sunil, Shetty (laugh, please!!), and Bulbul, seems forced as they do not serve any purpose. The worst is the cemetery sequence, where the horror element serves as a contrived device for a few thrills laced with a dash of humor.
Overall, the exposure of the true villain (which is unexpected and comes in again as a device to enhance the film’s “social relevance” while actually only adding to the runtime!) is too protracted. What could have been an exhilarating comedy becomes a serious social drama.
On the plus side, most of the one-liners are hilarious, like the “do lakh ki jagah do laash” line and the one-sided conversation between the ghost and the couple.
Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video Movie Review: Star Performance
Rajkummar Rao is his usual self but happily does not hold himself back like in some movies. Triptii Dimri is feisty and likable, her eyes gleaming with the right emotions: anger, confusion, or passion. The ‘Chanda’s—Mallika Sherawat and Archana Patel—are terrific in their respective roles.
Vijay Raaz gets to unleash an undiluted comic side, but Tiku Talsania and Rakesh Bedi, who usually go over the top, are kept on a leash. Rohit Shetty’s favorites, Ashwani Kalsekar and Mukesh Tiwari, prove their worth again, and whenever she appears, Archana Puran Singh steals the show as Vidya’s paan-addicted mother. The romantic sequence between her husband, Rakesh Bedi, and her will surely bring the house down and is brief yet hilarious.
Saharsh Kumar Shukla as Pardesi is outstanding, but I also liked the con man who wears a heap of keys around his neck and the two assistant cops, though I do not know those actors’ names. Mast Ali makes a mark as the main robber.