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Naqaab

Last year, with <i >36 China Town</i>, I thought Abbas-Mustan had lost their touch. With <i >Naqaab</i> they sink further. How worse can it get next?

Namrata Joshi

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O
n the surface, Naqaab feels way too similar to Abbas Mustan’s own hit Humraaz, with the leading actors, Bobby and Akshaye, playing almost identical characters here as well. But, I have subsequently been informed that like all Abbas Mustan creations, (Humraaz was A Perfect Murder, Ajnabee was Consenting Adults, Aitraaz was Disclosure) this too is heavily borrowed and copied from a foreign source—a little known film called Dot the I, whose only usp, perhaps, is the charismatic actor Gael Garcia Bernal. Akshaye, who fills into Bernal’s shoes, is usually quite a nice, likeable boy but wears such horrendous clothes and goes so hammy that you can’t help look the other way. However, there’s not much else to look at in the film any which direction—a newcomer called Urvashi Sharma, who they insist is pretty, and Bobby Deol, who I think is actually much prettier.

The usual Abbas Mustan elements are all there—the glitzy song-’n-dance routines, the larger-then-life locales. As for the plot, well it’s to do with this Burger King delivery girl Urvashi who is a tenant in the palace of Dubai millionaire (Bobby) who, believe it or not, watches Satyajit Ray films. She is just about to marry him when she falls in true love with Akshaye. The air of mystery is contrived. The first half is quite snappy courtesy some slick editing but the second half just goes on and on. The faux climax, several twists and turns and a volte face later it feels like an overstretched chewing gum. The one interesting element in the film is how the Akshaye-Urvashi relationship is getting secretly videotaped. The voyeurism theme could have been a nice peg to hang the tale on, but the directors think otherwise. Result? What’s been dubbed as "the most shocking thriller of the year" turns out to be the most boring.

Abbas Mustan may not be Bollywood’s greatest filmmakers, but have delivered some nicely giddy entertainers like Khiladi, Baazigar and that supremely kooky SRK film Baadshah—one of my abiding guilty pleasures. Last year, with 36 China Town, I thought the duo had lost their touch. With Naqaab they sink further. How worse can it get next?

High Fives

Bollywood

1. Naqaab
2. Harry Potter: Phoenix Ki Fauj
3. Apne
4. Aap Ka Suroor
5. Aawarapan

Hollywood

1. Harry Potter: Order of Phoenix
2. Transformers
3. Ratatouille
4. Live Free or Die Hard
5. License To Wed

Country

1. 5th Gear (Brad Paisley)
2. Big Dog Daddy (Toby Keith)
3. Taylor Swift (Taylor Swift)
4. Some Hearts (Carrie Underwood)
5. Between Raising Hell... (Big & Rich)

Courtesy: Film Information

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