India Pakistan - A neat rom-com masala!

The metaphor in the title says it all. Boy meets girl, they fight, they fall in love, they get separated due to a misunderstanding and then they finally unite. This narrative structure seems to be the gold standard globally when it comes to making a rom-com with a safe bet without any noir. India Pakistan has been made to perfectly fit into this template like its peers ‘Siva Manasula Sakthi’, ‘Vanakkam Chennai, et al (in fact it draws numerous parallels to these movies - like the leading pair bluffing about their profession and then sharing the same place). Director Anand has got most things right by blending romance and comedy in optimum proportions and as a result we as audience do not feel the ordeal of watching a movie that is a little under 2:30 hours with boringly choreographed numbers popping up periodically.

MS Bhaskar, Manobala and Pasupathy were skilfully worked into a plot that was otherwise going nowhere. Initially when the movie started like a ‘boy meets girl’ story I was a bit disappointed and thought that the movie would soon lose steam. But a comic track and an element of sinisterness with a make-believe villain added meat to the narrative structure. Although I would have still enjoyed the movie without the villainy plot which was quite lame. I felt that was a bit of a compromise as the director felt the need to have a dose of action and some lame thrills. However that bit transformed towards the climax and made room for some brilliant farce.

MS Bhaskar and Manobala beefed up the comic department and almost made it a laugh riot with Pasupathy pitching in time and again to rock the boat as well. Among the lead pair, Sushma Raj has made a promising debut as the leading lady and she has got a tailor made performance that was just about perfect for an introduction. Hope she builds on it and does not get lost like so many other girls who had a perfect launch pad but failed to capitalize the same. Vijay Antony looked lacklustre but kind of fitted the role, largely thanks to the director’s light-weight script that hardly had any serious or emotionally charged moments.

The movie is certainly worth a watch and can be called “value-for-money” as it is tailored for the family audiences without any double entendres or violence or sleaze tucked under its sleeves. One can have some mindless laughs without having to think much even after exiting the theater.

Verdict: Above average

Rating: 2.75 / 5