I think one of the most interesting things about Nagesh Kukunoor’s films is the diversity of genres that he dabbles in. He had told me once that he has a morbid fear of being typecast and wanted to make a film in every genre.
So while he had made an earlier foray in to comedy with his critically acclaimed film Bollywood Calling, what surprised me about Bombay to Bangkok was that the comedy was again very different from his earlier one. Even within the same genre there is always such tremendous scope for dabbling in a different subject matter.
Bombay to Bangkok has not been a blockbuster hit at the box office and after seeing the film twice, I can understand why. In an industry where everyone is out to make a quick buck, films are churned out by the gazillions and the so called film critics who perhaps spend their every waking minute rushing through movies, this sweet little comedy, which invited you into a charming world of likeable characters, and asks you to pace yourself and relax falls short.
This is a film where the characters some of whom, though flawed at the beginning some how come together as a very positive whole in the end and that too without slamming holes into either buildings or someone’s gut. They also don’t speak a language that is vulgar or crass as some of the recent spate of funnies that seem to have done well with their vulgar humor in Bollywood.
The storyline is simple enough. Chef needs money, steals from a mobster in Bombay, runs away to Bangkok, meets girl, falls in love, meets mobster’s son, loses girl and woos the girl back. It’s the treatment, the multi layers, the little touches, and near perfect casting that make this film so watchable.
Shreyas Talpade and Lena Christensen
The story begins with Shankar (Shreyas Talpade) grabbing a money bag at a restaurant and running for his life after realizing the moolah he had grabbed, belonged to the most notorious mobster in town. He is betrayed by a friend and just as all seems lost-there stands Jam K, the son of the mobster, his goons blocking the escape route, as he raps a menacing ultimatum to Shankar, a plane flies overhead, gets too close, the vibrations shake the little house, scare the goons and in the hullabaloo, Shankar makes his escape.
The runaway stumbles upon a delegation of doctors on a relief mission to Thailand and assuming the name of another doc, Dr Bhatadwadekar(a tribute to legendary director Hrishikesh Mukherjee who used this name in one of his films), Shankar joins the mission, hides his money in one of the medical supplies boxes and flies to more friendly skies but not without arousing the suspicion of a psychiatrist Dr Rati played by Jeneva Talwar. She has overheard him being referred to as Mr. Singh at the ticket counter and not Dr Bhatadwadekar before the flight. He concocts an even more unconvincing explanation that she obviously doesn’t buy.
The welcome for the doctors includes a trip to a Thai massage parlor where Shankar falls hook line and sinker for a lovely Thai masseuse Jasmine (played by Lena Christensen). With Kishore Kumar crooning in the back, who could resist the romance in the making, but the shy Shankar scoots off at Jamine’s first attempts at broken English and “make happy”-her new client. Their paths cross again when she picks up a part time job during the day as a medical assistant in the same camp. The doc may not have been made happy the night before by the lady, but he goes on his own “make happy” streak handing out Viagra tablets to every patient walking through the door. Its no surprise then that the cue outside his tent is a mile long and every male walks in and drops his pants without discussing symptoms with the new and now very popular doctor.
The mobster closing in on his heels, Shankar discovers his loot is at another camp and asks his tourist guide Rachinder Singh or Rach to help him convince Jasmine to go with him and he would pay her double the amount. The duo takes off, loosens up with a cool dude who hitches a ride on their motorbike, and makes off with their money. He later turns out to be Jasmine’s brother partying on his last night before embracing monk hood!
A Bollywood crazy uncle comes to the rescue but only after being told Shankar is friends with Aishwarya Rai. Jam K meanwhile has been felled by a stumble while chasing Shankar and regains consciousness to find the lovely Rati staring at him –her opening line.. a look at his low slung jeans “nice underwear.. must be tough to chase people in those jeans.” As she administers first aid, he unravels and transforms into a lovelorn, messed up, possibly very interesting case study for Rati and stays back happily on her couch at her request…the gangster who would be rapper is soon seen unleashing a torrent –he loves rap, he hates pop, he was tortured as a child..made to listen to Rafi, when he wanted Kishore.. and there’s more..by the time Jam K gets his grip on Shankar, Rati has cast her spell(remember an Apasara by that name).
Now the true rapper and reluctant gangster, lets Shankar the accidental crook, off the hook, and even gives him a tip on how to get his lady back, after she is arrested because of Shankar lying to her and the team leader stealing medical supplies to sell in the black-market.
But though love’s path isn’t smooth, Kishore da and the gangsta come to the love birds’ rescue. With Kishore da’s voice crooning Jaani O Jaani, casting a magic spell- all’s well that ends well.
The cinematography is beautiful, my favorite scene is of Shreyas and Lena riding on a bike as the sun rises behind them through the trees heralding a new beginning. This is a movie where if you just go with the idea of enjoying yourself, at the director’s pace and indulge in what Nagesh calls, ‘ a suspension of logic” you are bound to have a lot of fun.
The scenes are very cleverly written and one that got me very sentimental was a full fledged tribute to my favorite director Hrishikesh Mukherjee where Shreyas decides to cook a full meal for everyone with Manna Dey’s Bhor ayi bhaya andhiyaara-a take off from the film “Bawarchi’ in the background. Hrishi da and Kishore Kumar are Nagesh’s idols and he says he always includes something about them in each movie. “ It’s always a spot-it if you can” moment in my films but this time I decided to go all out and do a bigger segment. Bawarchi being my favorite film, I thought that scene would be a great way to connect with the audience. What was really disappointing was that most people didn’t get it. Either all the people who grew up on Hrishi da’s film are completely gone or they don’t see movies when they are first released. Many also didn’t get the last segment where Jaani O jaani and the poetic lines Vijay speaks are repeated at the end. Most people just took it as- oh boy sings song to get the girl.”
The casting was “near perfect”, with Vijay Maurya as a rapping gangster being the biggest scene stealer. Nagesh says he discovered him at a play a couple of years ago. “I didn’t like the play too much to be honest, but I saw this actor who did a 10 minute monologue trying to convince his teacher to teach him acting. When the guru asks him if he knows anything about acting, Vijay went into a 10 minute monologue imitating several actors and conveying what he knew about him and we were rolling on the floor-he was that good. Since then I have been trying to cast him. When I started writing the character of Jam K I instantly thought of him. He is brilliant in the movie Black Friday also. He is an actor who has this madness, and this hunger to prove himself.”
Another scene stealer was Manmeet Singh who played Rach the portly sardar translator and tourist guide for everyone. One of the cutest scenes is when he introduces his entire clan grandmother included as certified interpreters and later has them all piling into his room full of Punjabi love and oodles of food each time he gets depressed. Shreyas is as natural a performer as he has been in all his films. I think the only weak link I found was Lena Christensen. She is pretty and a reasonably decent actress, but somehow lacked the spark and animation that would have created a sizzling chemistry between her and Shreyas. The pairing of Vijay Maurya and Jeneva was actually much more compelling and the two were a great foil for each other. Wish their roles had been extended.
Naseer stole the show in a solitary shot of him admonishing his obviously not mean enough son but then Naseer is incomparable. The segment he did in Dus Kahaniyan where he let his eyes and expressions do the talking while Shabana played a disgruntled South Indian to the hilt is worth a watch.
So what has making this film taught Nagesh?
“Even when I was making the film my director of Photography who has been with me for four films Sudeep Chatterjee was warning me that I was going to make many people unhappy with several scenes, and we laughed and continued. After the film was released, that is exactly what happened. Many people also said to me-oh you must continue to make emotional films. I understand where that is coming from. I had made Bollywood Calling in the early part of my career, and people took that in stride. Now after the success of Iqbal and Dor, the new audience has increased. While my earlier loyal viewers will get this film, the much larger, newer audience hasn’t. They think this film was just squeezed in. They don’t realize that this film has been made with the same commitment and passion and madness with which I made my other films. I guess its not as loud or as in your face in terms of humor. But I can understand.
One of my absolutely favorite directors Ridley Scott made grand films like Gladiator, Black Hawk Down and Kindgom of Heaven and in between squeezed in this sweet film with three people in an apartment-Matchstick Men. It didn’t do well, in spite of being an excellent film because of what people always expect from him. So I can understand why Bombay to Bangkok didn’t do well at this point of time. The expectations of my newer audience has risen from the previous two films.”
Nagesh says its also reminded him of how things change every Friday “ Its quite funny – I have made my film and moved on but people are still running around in circles over the film. Every Friday its either a jubilant Oh my God or a scandalized Oh my God! And based on which Oh My God it is, friendships and loyalties change. The box office is certainly important, but my only lesson, which I learnt long ago in Hyderabad Blues, and which I believe to this day is to keep doing what you know well and not to be tied into the box office results. I firmly believe that the box office should NEVER ever dictate content. I won’t ever make films based on anything other than the gut instinct that brought me to this level in the first place.”