Ranbir Kapoor seems to have comfortably established himself as the next biggest superstar after the sun sets down on the Khans who are nearing their fifties. A natural actor that he is, most of his movies have been well received; even in those that didn't make money, his acting was appreciated.
Well, here is his new offering 'Besharam' that has a lot of masala: there's comedy, romance and action and directed by Abhinav Kashyap of 'Dabangg' fame. Predictably, some references and parodies from his earlier film are seen here; the lead character being someone who does wrong stuff but has a heart of gold or naming one of the key supporting characters as 'Chulbul' after Salman's old character.
'Besharam' begins with an introduction to Bheem Singh Chandel (Javed Jaffrey) a hawala kingpin in Chandigarh who needs stolen luxury cars for his business. His need gets him introduced to Babli (Ranbir Kapoor), a mechanic who is also a car thief. And since the hero ought to be a good guy, he is seen donating all his earnings to an orphanage he grew up in.
Wait: Babli is referred to as a smooth criminal and the first car theft that we see of his involves a massive chase drama with cops! And that's supposed to be super smooth, huh! Nonetheless, the chase sequence is used to introduce us to the cop-couple, who are also Ranbir Kapoor's real life parents, Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Kapoor, who are childless and eventually think of adopting someone.
One day, Babli's eyes fall on Tara Sharma (Pallavi Sharda) who is a middle-class girl with big dreams of living a big life and marrying into money. On one occasion she also insults Babli who has been trying to woo her. But it so happens that the Merc she bought to show off to her friends gets stolen by Babli, who doesn't know it's hers and delivers it to Chandel. But then, there's a twist in the tale.
As such, the story has nothing new. Some of its situations are so flawed and are a throwback to the 80's. Silly chase sequences, preposterous plot situations that are simplistic extensions of some weirdly idealistic scenario. And then there's the forced love angle between a lead pair that has no chemistry whatsoever. Of course, there's toilet humor too. Still, some of its better jokes are quite funny.
The film's weakest link is its lead actress. Pallavi Sharda, an Indian- Australian and trained dancer does not have the looks or acting skills or even screen presence to play a lead role. Also, despite the high heels she is seen wearing, she is way too short to be paired with Kapoor. The only plausible reason being casting an unknown girl would've been to keep the focus solely on their superstar!
But despite the weak plot and songs lacking punch, the only saving grace for the film is its lead actor Ranbir Kapoor and his ability to carry off any film; although that didn't apply to his debut film. His antics convince you to believe in his character and feel for him and also laugh at his lines which he delivers with an accent that only makes him seem more authentic.
Nonetheless, no heroic charm can save 'Besharam' unless it makes its money using the hype that surrounded its release and the news that it is being released on 3600 of screens, tad more than 'Chennai Express'. But if audience reactions to simplistic comedies are the way to go by, there is no reason to believe why 'Besharam' won't do well. After all, it has a big star and it's a comedy!
Verdict: Well, there's nothing much to expect as a story and some of its funny scenes are actually similar to old movies. If you are in a mood for masala entertainment and random humor, 'Besharam' would suit your funny taste buds. If you are slightly more discerning, you won't really like it. But, if you are a huge Ranbir Kapoor fan, none of these reasons apply anyways.
