An official remake of the 2010 British comedy film titled The Infidel, 'Dharam Sankat Mein' is a well-intentioned, honest film, but sadly, its not very entertaining. Reason? The half-baked Screenplay, which appeals only in bits.
'Dharam Sankat Mein' Synopsis: At the age of 55, a Hindu man discovers that he was born Muslim and adopted by a Hindu family. Chaos follows...
'Dharam Sankat Mein' has a terrific premise & to an extend, the film works. The narrative is nicely paced until its first-hour, where its protagonist gets into a series of unexpected events. But, the same can't be said about the preachy second-hour. All of a sudden, this light-comedy becomes a drama about the Hindu-Muslim conflict & the depiction of god-men in a bad taste, seems to be getting repetitive now. First OMG, then P.K & now 'Dharam Sankat Mein', have been primarily based on religion & god-men. The only difference between the previous 2 films, were, that they were extremely well-made, but 'Dharam Sankat Mein' falls short on expectations.
The Screenplay begins with skill & even the dialogue are clever, but the second-hour is strictly a no-no. Fuwad Khan's Direction is fair. Cinematography is standard. Editing is fine. The Songs, however, add nothing to the narrative.
Performance-Wise: Paresh Rawal can never be doubted. And although he has enacted a similar part in OMG before, the screen-legend enacts the central part with amazing ease. He's delightful all though as the man in question. Annu Kapoor, also, is in fantastic form. His scenes with Paresh, work very well. Naseeruddin Shah, as an exaggerated god-man, hams. His performance stands out like a sore thumb.
On the whole, 'Dharam Sankat Mein' is certainly made with noble intentions, but as a cinematic experience, its strictly okay!
