Mubarakan

MUBARAKAN revolves around the family of twin brothers and the madness that occurs as a result. Karan (Arjun Kapoor) is based in London while Charan (Arjun Kapoor), his twin brother, lives in Punjab. Karan is in love with Sweety (Ileana DCruz) while Charan loves Nafisa (Neha Sharma). Unfortunately, both are unable to tell their respective immediate family members about their relationship. Meanwhile, Jitto (Ratna Pathak Shah) who has taken care of Karan decides to fix the marriage of Charan with Binkle (Athiya Shetty), daughter of the very rich Mr Sandhu (Rahul Dev).

Anees Bazmee has been entertaining us with his whacky comedies revolving around hilarious situations about marriage since the 2005 hit movie No Entry and in his lates offering, Bazmee offers us the chacha-bhatija Jodi of Anil Kapoor and Arjun Kapoor for the very first time. But does this combo manage to make the film a hit? Let's find out... Set in Punjab and London, Mubarakan revolves around twins Karan and Charan (Arjun Kapoor), who grew up with the siblings of their deceased father.

Mubarakan revolves around twins Charan and Karan (Arjun Kapoor) in a double role. The death of their parents when they were infants prompts their uncle Kartar Singh (Anil Kapoor) to pack Karan with his elder sister (Ratna Pathak Shah) in London and Charan with his elder brother (Pavan Malhotra) in Chandigarh. They grow up with different personalities. While Karan is more street smart, Charan is someone totally dedicated to family. Both secretly have girlfriends, Sweety (Ileana D'Cruz) and Nafisa (Neha Sharma) respectively.

Known for making comedies, director Anees Bazmee, who last directed the awful Welcome Back in 2015, brings you all yet another family entertainer which won't bore you even for a minute. After a long time, a film like Mubarakan will tickle your funny bone. Charan (Arjun Kapoor), a shy Sikh boy lives with his father Baldev (Pawan Malhotra) in Chandigarh. He loves a Muslim girl Nafisa (Neha Sharma) who is a lawyer but has no courage to tell his family about her.

Anees Bazmee does it again. The filmmaker used the perfect recipe to make a complete laugh riot. After 'No Entry' (2005) and 'Welcome' (2007), 'Mubarakan' is a great blend of clean, situational and slapstick humour. The film revolves around twins Karan and Charan, played by Arjun Kapoor, who lose their parents as babies. Their extended family adopts them separately, and no, it is not kept a secret from the brothers. Karan is in love with Sweety (Ileana D'Cruz), while Charan is in a relationship with Nafisa (Neha Sharma).

Charan and Karan are twins separated as infants after their parents die in a car accident. Their uncle Kartar Singh sends Karan to his sister residing in London and Charan to his brother residing in Chandigarh. As a result, the twins grow up as cousins. Charan and Karan's parents are looking for brides for them while they have girlfriends. Unable to tell this to their parents, they approach their uncle Kartar Singh for help but he messes it up all the more. What follows are a series of hilarious incidents, confusions, misunderstandings and more.

Mubarakan opens in 1990s England. Some rather reckless driving leads to a car crash resulting in orphaned twins who are adopted by a doting aunt and an equally doting uncle, respectively. Karan grows up in London while Charan is raised in Chandigarh. Unlike their appearance (Arjun Kapoor in a double role), the brother's personalities are not identical. Karan is fast-talking; Charan is docile. They have another thing in common: the inability to reveal the truth about their love lives to their family.

Director Anees Bazmee, story writers Rupinder Chahal and Balwinder Singh Janjua and dialogue writer Rajesh Chawla, take a bow for making a clean film that is an out-and-out entertainer! They don't serve comedies this size no more. But to say that about Bazmee's Mubarakan shouldn't make you feel that one is taking the credit away from a stellar star cast. Arjun Kapoor, who doubles up as Karan (the smart guy) and Charan (the duffer), proves a point with this madcap. This is Arjun Kapoor's second double role after Aurangzeb, and he rocks.

You are most definitely not in original territory here nor is there anything terrible smart going on in Mubarakan. The premise of twins causing chaos has been infinitely supreme in movies like Ram Aur Shyam, Golmaal, Angoor, Seeta Aur Geeta, Chaalbaaz and even Judwaa. But Anees Bazmee who has made a career of dishing out gags and funny one-liners, goes at this one again with gusto. And you do find yourself amused at times.

Anees Bazmee's Welcome is one of the most underrated comedies of recent times. However, over the years, it has become one of the most watched films on TV. In fact, its situational comedy is a lesson in comic timing and how to carry off a slapstick humour. This amazingly funny film revolves around an eligible bachelor who falls in love with a gangster's sister, and how he creates confusion to have his way. Since then, Bazmee has directed Singh Is Kinng, No Problem, Thank You, Ready and Welcome Back. All these films had the theme of marriage at the centre.

There comes a point in Mubarakan when Anil Kapoor's dejected figure draws laughs simply by walking into a room. Anees Bazmee's film, by then, has more than established that without the dynamism of this 60-year-old actor, this comedy of errors really would be a forgettable, messy affair. Kapoor dominates each frame, establishing that age is just a number and it hasn't diminished his youthful energy. There are two Arjun Kapoors, Ileana D'Cruz, Neha Sharma and thankfully only one Athiya Shetty, but even the five together cannot match the enthusiasm of Anil Kapoor.

Twin trouble capers come preloaded with a certain degree of comic verve. So does Mubarakan, directed by Anees Bazmee of No Entry and Singh is Kinng fame. But in trying to squeeze every ounce of hilarity out of its scrappy screenplay, the film goes overboard with its excessive cheeriness and swerves into the realms of inanity. In the bargain, it loses its way completely after delivering a fairly breezy first half.