Kathmandu:

Lage Raho Munna Bhai (Comedy)

Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Arshad Warsi, Vidya Balan, and Boman Irani

Direction: Rajkumar Hirani

Showing at Jai Nepal, Kumari, G7K

Gandhigiri scores over Gundagardi. However, it needs lots of bravado to take the path of abstinence that could even bring down the British Raj. Or that’s what Munna Bhai (Sanjay Dutt) believes as he morphs from a goon to a Gandhian professor, this time however, to woo his ladylove.

The dhoti-clad spindly rebel might be long defunct, but his wisdom of truth and non-violence still work in the world driven by greed, vice and violence (or does it?). That’s the unpretentious message that Munna Bhai’s riotous escapades in the sequel attempt to drive home. And it almost does!

Munnabhai catches a new fad, and on this count it’s the radio programme called ‘Good Morning Mumbai’. But the fad reaches further as the soothing voice of the seductress Jhanvi (Vidya Balan) smites him to smithereens. And the only chance to meet Jhanvi is to win a quiz based on Gandhi. As Munnabhai maneuvered as a doctor in the prequel, this time he poses as a professor of history.

But things are never the same for the go-getter goon as Gandhi himself comes to his salvation and things turn for the worse. However, Munna-Circuit duo go the whole hog (even Satyagraha!), to prove that that they are true Gandhians to the spirit.

Indeed, the Munna-Circuit combo is scintillating and makes the audience roll in the aisles in practically every scene they appear in. And though, there are sequences that seem to glorify Gandhism, the stroke of humour makes you wonder if it shouldn’t outmaneuver even that of the Mahatma himself.

And apart from the humour that keeps tickling you throughout the movie, it’s the high-octane emotional quotient that adds to the magic of the mindless meanderings. The idea of Gandhism, which is a bit fanciful and a bit anachronistic, is handled with flourish.

And though Dutt steals the maximum screen presence, it’s Arshad Warsi role that provides strength to Munna’s character. Lucky Singh (Boman Irani) is the same cantankerous buffoon, but nonetheless adds more punch to the drama. Balan is equally irresistible in yet another shade that reveals the other side to her demure disposition. And the cameos by Abhishek and Jimmy Shergill is lovable.

Lageraho... is at the same time a sweet, silly and scintillating comedy.