Life Partner (2009)

Life Partner: Timepass flick

Rating: 2.5 out of 5*

Starring: Govinda, Fardeen Khan, Tusshar Kapoor, Genelia D’Souza, Prachi Desai, Darshan Jariwala and Amrita Rao in Sp.App

Director: Rumi Jaffrery

‘Marriage’ is the union of two souls in a bond, which lasts a lifetime. Though practically, there is far too much that goes into actually managing a ‘marriage’. This is what ‘Life Partner’ is all about in a nutshell.

It is a story about three friends, Karan (Fardeen Khan) for whom ‘Love marriage is the perfect bet’, Bhavesh (Tusshar Kapoor) who does not believe in the concept of ‘Dating’ and prefers an arranged set up and then there’s Jeet (Govinda) a divorce lawyer who believes in ‘No marriage’. Karan’s and Bhavesh’s lives turn upside down when they marry their respective partners, Sanjana (Genelia D’souza) and Prachi (Prachi Desai) and how they re-affirm their faith in the institution of marriage is what the rest of the film all about.

Turning producers, director duo Abbas Mustan have not left any stone unturned from giving the film a grandiose look. Wish they were equally charged about promoting the film as there is no buzz around the movie. The locales of Cape Town are eye catching and Sameer Arya’s cinematography makes it look so much better.

Writer-Director Rumi Jaffery has already proved his prowess in writing in the past and after seeing this film one can easily say that his craft in direction is equally good as far as films of this genre are concerned. But the screenplay (Yunus Sajawal) suffers on many counts as the film starts off well, dips intermittently, gathers momentum in the second half and drops again during pre-climax and climax. Niranjan Iyengar’s dialogues are funny at most places and tickle your funny bone at most occasions. Less said about Pritam’s music the better. We also wonder how could a master lyricist like Javed Akhtar could come up with such mediocre work. Though each of the song numbers have been shot well, there is not a single song you want to carry home or even hum around. Watching Kuke Kuke number is fun because of Govinda and Genelia’s histrionics. Editing by Sanjay Sankla needs some serious trimming especially in the second half.

Fardeen Khan has by now got comfortable with the camera and it shows. Tusshar suits in his part well and does full justice to it. Genelia looks cute but her dialogue delivery needs to be improved. Prachi Desai is very likeable and gives an earnest performance. Govinda once again plays to the gallery and succeeds in evoking laughter. Anupam Kher is like always, ever dependable. Vikram Gokhale and Darshan Jariwala are sincere in their respective roles. Amrita Rao in a guest appearance as a bar girl fails to create any impact again with her miniscule clothing.

All said and done, Life Partner can be a good fun filling experience this weekend (if you are not living in Mumbai) and can be watched along with your partner. For those who are still single, it teaches you the repercussions of having one in your life. So, be prepared!