Bareilly Ki Barfi : a tempting family entertainer

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Looks like, Bollywood has finally cracked the formula for sleeper-hits. Make a Desi film with Desi characters on a Desi location ????. Bareilly Ki Barfi is one such formula.

Bareilly Ki Barfi : a tempting family entertainer
Source : NDTV

After Bareilly ka Jhumka and Bareilly ka Thumka, comes Bareilly Ki Barfi. Made by Ashwini Iyer Tiwari of critically acclaimed ‘NIL BATTEY SANNATA’ and written by ‘DANGAL’ director, Nitish Tiwari, BAREILLY KI BARFI rides on high hopes and is officially a desi-adaptation of a French hard-back, “ Ingredients of Love”.

Porting it to Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh, Aiyyer aims for a ’Lallan top’ film that is full on Shuddh Desi Romance in Shuddh-Hindi format. In a love-triangle, who wins the snow-white Bitti in the end is not difficult to guess. Infact, BKB makes a genuine effort to be a light-hearted rom-com, filled with some really good actors and clean humour.

But as usual, the curse of ‘predictability’ kills the fun-factor somewhere in between though Bitti’s besotted ‘Romeo s’, Ayushman Khurana and Rajkumar Rao make it a worthwhile watch.

Without giving away much of the plot, it is suffice to say that BKB is a small town film with large hearted people. But honestly, haven’t we seen this cliché`-combo in past hit films like RANJHANA , TANU WEDS MANU series and BADRINATH/ HUMPTY SHARMA KI DULHANIYA etc etc?? It is nothing new to watch the cheek-by-jowl Kothis, narrower-than-footpath lanes, pesky neighbours or nukkadwala paan-stalls. Whether it is Kanpur, Meerut, Ambala or Bareilly, it is no different.

But proof of the pudding lies in eating it. Likewise, fate of a film lies in its treatment aka direction. So, lets chomp into this delectable ‘Barfi’.

Storyline

BKB revolves around rebel Bitti, Kirti Sanon ( a total misfit ☹ ) and her eccentric family. Her marriage-obsessed mother (Seema Bhargawa) hates Bitti’s single status and is always on a look-out for a suitable groom. While paan chewing, laidback father (Pankaj Tripathi) is at the other extreme of being a liberal. He occasionally shares a puff and a drink with his darling daughter without any qualms; Badhiya hai ????.

Naturally, Bitti is our beer-guzzling, cigarette- smoking bindass babe. She is on a personal mission to find a soul-mate; who would accept her unconditionally…with all-flaws; including non-virgin status. A tall order for a small towners indeed !!!!

Bareilly Ki Barfi : a tempting family entertainer
Source : Koimoi

Soon, god answers her prayers with not one but two dashing men, vying for her attention. Chaos is what follows under the name of mistaken identity. And Bitti is confused as hell over true love. In the meantime, the rivalry between blinded-in-love-boys reaches the point of no return while Bitti’s parents are delirious with two suitors in-hand. Also , adding gallons of fuel to this triangular mash-up is Ayushman’s jigari yaar, Rohit Chowdhary. Impressive debut ????.

Indeed, if you could sit through the passive 1st half than action-packed 2nd half is your take-away gift ????????.

But must mention that Bitti’s father talking with tabbacco-laden mouth might be a local thing but is plain disgusting to watch.

The Cast

Lucky girl, Kriti Sanon has got a super-meaty role but afsoos, she remains ordinary with her ’extraordinary’ looks that are simply out-of-place for a middle-class, small town girl. Her bleached hair, tweeked brows and crisp fashion sense turns Bitti into a sophisticated Betty from upper-crust…..tch ..tch.. Pariniti Chopra would have been a better choice.

Ayushman Khurana, for a change gets to portray a street-smart ruffian rather than just cute guy-next-door. Whether it is his UP dialect peppered with purest form of rashtrabhasha or the local slang, Ayushman is a master blaster…total swag all the way !!!!

Rajkumar Rao, a methodical and acclaimed actor, wows one and all with his split personality that of a goon and gao-ka-chora act…. His phone antics are rib-tickling. We wished more screen time for him.

Music is situational while dialogues are absolutely spunky.

Overall, BAREILLY KI BARFI is a breezy family entertainer that promises to extend your holiday mood a lil bit more ????????