Marriages are as integral part of Indian cinema as they are a part of Indian culture. Be it about arranging marriages, finding the special someone or, as in the case of Dhula Mil Gaya, avoiding the special someone.
Indeed Mudassar Aziz has put together quite an intriguing family entertainer. It has the packaging of a typical entertainer with a great story and if it hadn't been for the several flaws in writing the post interval, the film could have been perfect, but it looks like that'll just be a dream for both the audiences and the makers.
Dulha Mila Gaya begins when ignorant playboy Donsai (Fardeen Khan) has to rethink his party animal life after his father passes away, leaving him with a completely unreasonable term in his will. This term states that he can only inherent his share of the property if he marries the girl chosen for him.
So out of desperation, Donsai heads to Punjab to marry the village belle chosen for him, Samarpreet (Ishita Sharma), planning to abandon her the moment the ceremony wraps up and to return to his high life - leaving her with the promise that he'll return soon for her (with no such plan in mind). The real story begins when Donsai's bride Samarpreet arrives in West Indies to claim what's hers only to find that the man she married foolishly was nothing more than a cheat and liar. The rest of the story is about how Samarpreet aka Samara gets to her happy ending with her prince charming with the help of Donsai's diva friend Shimmer (Sushmita Sen) who is adamant to get the naive Samarpreet the love of her life and teach her good friend a lesson of a lifetime!
Mudassir Aziz is a one man army when it comes to DMG - director, screenplay writer, story writer and even dialogue writer. However, perhaps doing so many tasks at once isn't recommended. Whilst the first half of the film is rather entertaining and has no real flaws, the post interval shows flaws in abundance. Firstly, you question why on earth Donsai can't recognize Samarpreet. Just because of a minor makeover? Honestly didn't we already encounter such a naïve mistake on part of the makers with Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi? However, it looks like Mudassir didn't learn from all the criticism that came Aditya Chopra's way for doing the exact same thing. Secondly, the writers were highly confused in the post interval portion of the film with the introduction of Shahrukh's character and re-entrance of Mohit Chaddha and Tara. It seems that the makers wanted to split the amount of screen time between the 3 couples and failed miserably at it. You in fact sit there confused as to what the film is truly about now because as far as you're concerned, the first half only boasted of the complication in Donsai and Samapreet's love story; but suddenly post interval, two more are brought into the picture and you're expected to follow each one through. This leaves the audiences confused and soon they find themselves getting impatient and ready to walk out. The film would have benefited far more if the focus had remained on Ishita Sharma, Sushmita Sen and Fardeen Khan's characters.
Furthermore, characterisation of Donsai is rather questionable too. He's portrayed as the typical playboy, however when he sees the goodness of his in-laws in Punjab he melts. Still, he heartlessly leaves his naive bride and return to enjoy his life in the West. Post interval, you see an extra mean streak of his character that just doesn't match with whatever you've learnt about Donsai until that point. Sushmita Sen's character Shimmer is consistent for most parts, but at times she is portrayed as a powerful woman, other times she's just a dumb model, and the next minute she's an emotionally driven young lady again. If the audiences are confused, imagine how confused the man who wrote all this must have been!
Now, we come to a much less disastrous part of the film - the performances. Sushmita Sen seemed to be the highlight of the film so it's natural to begin with her. No matter how many Deepikas, Bipashas and Priyankas we see, no one can ever come close to the sex appeal of Sushmita Sen. Watch only a second of her introductory scene on the beach and you'll be nodding your heads in agreement in no time. There could have never been a more perfect role for such a diva than the role of an out and out diva! What is most admirable about this sensational diva is the fact that despite knowing quite well that she rocks no matter what, she puts 110% in every role. Still, one cannot help hankering for more meatier roles for this talented diva.
Ishita Sharma proves to be scene stealer and is highly competent in her role despite being only three films old. The young actress holds her ground well and handles a very lengthy and important role with ease. We hope to see her return to the screen soon! Fardeen Khan gets a lot of scope in the first half but sadly disappears quite a bit post interval.
The glitches in his characterization makes you question his performance. Let's hope he makes some wiser choices in his selection of films in 2010. Shahrukh Khan, on the other hand, is utterly forced into the film and is nothing extraordinary. Whilst he's adorable as the loving companion of Shimmer, who loves her despite knowing that he'll never be a priority in her life, he fails to hold up to his King Khan status. More than anything, his heart did not seem be in the movie and this was highly apparent onscreen.
Music by Lalit Pandit is well composed for such a genre and is adequately placed in the film to aid the story along - a great call on the director's part to insert scenes in between songs because it truly makes you feel the songs are worthwhile and not a waste of your time. In the 21st century, when everyone lives life in a rush, audiences have very limited time to spend at the cinemas. Directors need to think more and more about the decision to place songs when, where and how.
To conclude, let's say that Dulha Mil Gaya will be one SRK release that will surely not cut it at the box office. The film is likely to suffer for one big reason and that is the prolonged making. The audience's hype about the film has simply died down and they've moved on - sadly, this will be very bad for business. We have to say with great regret that this one is nothing to spare time from your busy schedule for. Save it for a DVD watch on those lonely, rainy nights when you truly have nothing better to do.
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