Phata Poster Nikhla Hero
Stars: Shahid Kapoor, Illeana D’Cruz, Padmini Kolhapure
Running time: 147 mins
Stars: 3/5

There’s a line delivered in Hindi in this Shahid Kapoor comedy that goes something like: “I have done all I can here. I have delivered fantastic dialogues, bashed up bad guys, romanced a girl and danced like there’s no tomorrow.”

These words aptly sum up Phata Poster Nikhla Hero.

Kapoor, who badly needs a blockbuster in his kitty, does all of this and more. The trouble is, he overdoes it. But we can forgive his wildly exaggerated act because hamming is expected from a movie that’s intended to be over-the-top and silly.

Any emotion, be it joy, sorrow or fear, is drummed into our heads.

It works in the first half, which introduces to the lovable Vishwas Rao (Kapoor) a twenty-something who dreams of becoming a Bollywood star. He may not be able to point out Chennai or Mumbai on an Indian map but he sure knows all about Rajinikanth, the Southern superstar and can repeat Salman Khan’s hit dialogues at the drop of the hat.

But the trouble is that his mother, played by Padmini Kolhapure, wants her son to be an honest police officer (she’s specific about the honest bit). Like any good son in a Bollywood film, he doesn’t want to disappoint his all-sacrificing single mother who drives rickshaws to fend for her son. So he does the next best thing. Lie about it and roam the streets of Mumbai in India’s khaki police uniform.

A bumbling comedy of errors follows where he meets the angelic, waif-thin social worker Kajal (Illeana D’Cruz). Known as “complaint Kajal” in cop circles, she dreams of a crime-free world.

Surprisingly, the chemistry between Kajal and Rao is not as explosive as expected. In fact, the hero has some crackling dialogues with the actual cops who are heavily caricatured in this comedy. Watch out for the wordplay between Kapoor and top cop Darshan Jariwala. The gags work sporadically but the humour seems forced in some scenes.

Directed and written by Raj Kumar Santoshi, his latest comedy suffers from a severe Ajab Prem Ki Gazab Kahani hangover. The director borrows several elements from his own 2009 blockbuster. Just like Ajab Gazab, his Phata Poster too is cartoonish, overdosing on songs and gags. Perhaps if he had stuck to his mission of being unapologetically silly, the movie would have worked a lot better. History has taught us that being preachy in a cartoonish movie is never met with a happy ending.

It’s a perfect showcase for Kapoor who excels in the dramatic, angry scenes but overdoes the funny parts. Watch this if you are ready to suspend belief and love Shahid Kapoor to the point of distraction.