Popular stand-up comedian Kapil Sharma was to make his film debut with Y-films’ ‘Bank Chor’. Sharma had to opt-out of the project due to date issues and bagged a plump project in Abbas-Mustan’s ‘Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon’. In the film, the male protagonist is married to three different women. This fact triggers a series of events that one gets to see throughout the film. The plot of the film, as one could gauge from the promos, seems to bear a resemblance to Anees Bazmee’s ‘Sandwich’ (2006) which starred Govinda, Raveena Tandon, and Mahima Chaudhary in the lead roles. Director duo Abbas-Mustan had shown a flair for comedy in the past what with each of their films boasting of a few interesting comic sequences. However, these sequences were part of thrillers which the duo excelled in. ‘Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon’ is their full-fledged comedy.
Circumstances force Kumar Shiv Ram Kishan (Kapil Sharma) to get married to three young women at different points. His three wives Juhi (Manjari Fadnis), Simran (Simran Mandi), and Anjali (Sai Lokur) live in three different suburbs of the city, are oblivious of the fact that their husband has had three marriages. On the advice of his lawyer and confidante Karan (Varun Sharma), he shifts all of them into a single building and gets them a flat each on three different floors. While Kumar takes utmost care of all his three wives, he has a girlfriend named Deepika (Elli Avram) whom he is deeply in love with.
The plot of the film is fairly simple and predictable but it is the way the various fun moments and a few dramatic sequences are woven into the screenplay is that makes it an engaging affair. The film is unapologetically filled with gags and laugh-a-minute jokes that emerge as the greatest strength. The humour gels well with the screenplay but how one wishes the writers had worked harder on the script. The film throws a few surprises but they are scarce in number. The screenplay might not boast of novelty but the simplistic treatment coupled with the humour makes sure that the film sails through.
Kapil Sharma makes a very confident debut. He excels in the comic sequences and also shows a glimpse of brilliance in the dramatic moments. Out of the four leading ladies, Manjari Fadnis impresses the most. Simran Mundi has a very good screen presence but her performance could have been better. Sai Lokur acts well but her Marathi accent comes across as distracting. Elli Avram is so busy aping Katrina Kaif that one gets to see very little of the young actress. Though Arbaaz Khan is good as the deaf underworld don, his character could have had more layers to it. Varun Sharma delivers a terrific performance and is immensely likeable as Karan, the lawyer. Jammie Lever, in her debut, delivers one of the most memorable performances in the film. Sharat Saxena, Supriya Pathak Shah and Manoj Joshi play their parts very well.
Abbas-Mustan, who had last directed ‘Race 2’ (2013), attempt comedy for the first time and prove their dexterity over this genre as well. Though some of the scenes in the film come across as a little outdated, they succeed in maintaining a good pace and in engaging the audience throughout most of the film’s duration. The screenplay (Anukalp Goswani and Dheeraj Sarna) is nothing extraordinary but they infuse it with several humorous moments that camouflage the mediocrity of the script to a good extent. The dialogues (Anukalp Goswani and Dheeraj Sarna) are witty and complement the narrative. The music (Dr Zeus, Tanishk Bagchi, Amjad-Nadeem and Javed Mohsin) is strictly average. The cinematography (Dilshad V.A) is fair. Much of the credit for the fast pace of the film goes to the editing (Hussain Burmallla). The production design (Ashok Lokare) is not up to the mark and gives a slightly dated look to the film.
The film is a throwback to the kind of comedies Govinda used to do in the ’90s. The film benefits from a competent lead player and several funny moments. If you are a fan of Kapil Sharma’s brand of comedy, you will end up liking ‘Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon’.
Rating: 3/5
