Bunty Aur Babli (2005)

Bunty Aur Babli (Bunty And Babli) are the Bollywood equivalent of Bonnie and Clyde. Both misunderstood by their families, and longing for more from life, Rakesh and Vimmi each leave home to follow their dreams. Fate or circumstance brings them together. Closed doors and corrupt dealings keep them together. Frustrated after a bank manager steals his get rich scheme, Rakesh devises a plan to con the con man. On the run, Rakesh and Vimmi become Bunty and Babli. Thus begins an adventure that leads them from Lucknow to Delhi with many stops in between.

The evolving relationship between the two main characters is enchanting, despite the nefarious nature of their partnership. Abhishek Bachchan and Rani Mukherjee have a wonderful chemistry as the engaging criminal couple. Their characters are well developed, allowing the viewer to see beyond their unlawful behavior, to the warm-hearted souls that they truly are. Bunty and Babli charm everyone they meet, including Deputy Commissioner of Police, Dashrath Singh (played by Amitabh Bachchan). The film has elements of Catch Me if You Can, as DCP Singh tries to track them.

Bunty repeats the aphorism "Yeh world hai na world... Isme do tarah ke log hotey hai... (This world has two kinds of people . . . ) several times throughout the film. It seems to have become almost a philosophy for him, in an effort, perhaps to make sense of a world that doesn't seem to understand him.

I was drawn to this film after watching one of the musical numbers on You Tube. Kajra Re is pure Bollywood song and dance, and the special appearance by the stunning Aishwarya Rai is the icing on the cake. The songs in the film are captivating and memorable, and the incongruous sight of Amitabh Bachchan rapping during the end credits was a delightful end to the experience. One of the most delightful and characteristic aspects of Bollywood films is the way in which the musical numbers can transport the characters into totally different settings, as a means to portray a particular emotion or event.

As with most Bollywood films, it is quite long, at 170 minutes. With non-stop action and song-and-dance numbers, I hardly noticed the time passing. If you've never seen a Bollywood film, this one would be a great introduction.

The one issue I had was the tendency of the subtitles to flash by too quickly, near the beginning of the film. As the action began, this was much less of an issue, and did not detract from the enjoyability of the film.

I think this movie was part "Bonnie & Clyde" and part "Catch Me If You Can". The story was pure fantasy, but totally engaging and fun. The songs were catchy, and I find myself humming the tunes even a couple of weeks after watching the movie. There is also a cameo (song) by Aishwarya Rai (best song of the movie) to look forward to. Great fun!

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BUNTY AUR BABLI is a fun movie. For American viewers it's BILL AND TED'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE Meets BONNIE AND CLYDE. Bunty (the guy) and Babli (the girl) are both so good natured and so good looking that it's hard to remember that they're grifters.

Actually, they aren't. They're just two kids from small towns looking to escape the family business (Bunty) and a traditional arranged marriage (Babli). They run off (separately), meet, and begin a long string of criminal misadventures, mostly defrauding obnoxious rich people, all the while having a blast.

The film is seemingly endless, and presents us with (at least) one of everything onscreen, including the kitchen sink. Flashy dance club routines break up the action, characters come and go in profusion, the storyline wanders more than an Indian mendicant on his way to Varanasi, and somewhere inside the third hour of the film the typical American viewer comes to realize that Bollywood loves colorful excess and pretty people. Not too different from Hollywood, really.

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On the heels of their award-winning performances as an abusive thug and his suffering wife in Yuva (2004), Abhishek Bachchan and Rani Mukerji are paired again, this time, in lighter fare--the romantic comedy Bunty Aur Babli--playing a hen-pecked con artist and his vivacious partner in crime--and their delivery is just as strong.

Amitabh Bachchan appears with his son Abhishek for the first time in this film--and they went on to memorable onscreen collaborations in Sarkar (2005), Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006), Sarkar Raj (2008), and Paa (2009). Here, the senior Bachchan--a jack of all genres--plays Dashrath, a cool, crusty police detective, and he hams it up to the fullest in bomber jacket and aviator sunglasses while hot on the trail of two notorious small-town kids on a crime spree. His interaction with his son's character, Rakesh, is a riot.

Director Shaad Ali's previous film Saathiya (2002), which also starred Mukerji, was a serious story also about impulsive young lovers who strike out on their own, and here again, Ali creates vivid working-class characters, and his signature metaphor of train travel figures largely.

Rakesh meets Vimmi (Mukerji) in a train station after both have run away from home. They're dreamers who want more out of life than their parents imagine for them, and they're frustrated with the limitations of their upbringings. Believing they're destined for bigger and better things--Vimmi wants to be Miss India and Rakesh has a business idea--and delighted to discover a kindred spirit, they hit the road together. When their plans are a bust, they start scamming for money--and they have so much fun doing it, they don't want to stop. They hilariously impersonate government officials, spiritual gurus, gangsters, and business partners to trick people into giving them free meals, hotel rooms, cars, and cash. They adopt the names Bunty and Babli and leave their initials at every crime scene as they crisscross North India at a frenetic pace and gain fame as a crime duo. Finally, they're successful and important, as they always hoped to be.

While they start out as pals, it's inevitable that this reckless, passionate couple fall in love. After all, they argued like an old married couple from day one--so they make it official. But once hitched, everything changes. Suddenly, Vimmi has different priorities, and they have to find a way to be true to themselves while taking responsibility for each other. But that's not an easy thing to do with Dashrath always one step behind them.

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This movie is really good. Cute and not overly silly. I like it that the main actor's lives don't turn out the way they want all the time. Makes it more realistic...kind of. Abhishek and Rani are a great pair. The soundtrack is also great.

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