BADHAAI HO (HINDI) (2018)

What happens when a middle class boy of marriageable age finds that his parents are expecting a baby..? The movie chronicles the ordeals of Kaushiks - a twenty something Nakul (Ayshmann Khurrana) working in a private company, his school going brother Gullar who find it hard to face their friends, taking cheap pleasure at their discomfiture even as their parents - Jeetendra aka Jeetu (Gajraj Rao) and Priyamvada aka Babli (Neena Gupta) - at the centre of this pickle, brace to face their sons, and their dreaded dadi (Surekha Sikri) as well as the sundry near and dears who jump to judge them with righteous contempt. 

The casting choices are apt to say the least. Neena Gupta is a picture of grace with her winning screen presence and is excellent as Priyamvada. She effortlessly wins our heart as a loving mother and wife, a caring daughter in law and shines through the gamut of emotions without breaking a sweat and is capable of conveying with just a silent gaze or glare. It is indeed a travesty of Bollywood that we do not see more of her in our movies. Gajraj Rao shares a natural chemistry with Neena Gupta and is in fine form as the romantic husband, closet poet and a father who is finding it hard to explain a sticky situation to his children and mom. Surekha Sikri is a hoot as the feisty grandma and cracks you up in several sequences.  Ayushmann Khurrana brings out the multiple shades of his character Nakul - be it romance, anger, confusion, embarrassment, vulnerability - in a remarkable performance. Sanya Malhotra and Sheeba Chaddha try their best in parts that are comparatively underwritten and appear tacky in comparison to the main characters.

This is a neat comedy drama that keeps a fine balance on a subject that could easily have slipped into a slippery mess of being too crass or a caricature or worse, a sappy melodrama. But, debutante director Amit Ravindernath Sharma and his team of writers steer this film skillfully - for the most part - with sprightly humour and some sentiments that tug at your heart. His fine sense of balance is also evident in the narrative which provides optimal scope of every member of the cast, (especially Neena Gupta and Gajraj Rao who are the parents) - just as every member of a family come together to make it work. 

Overall, it is a quirky yet rooted comedy drama with a crisp runtime of little over two hours (could've been a tad shorter though) elevated by superlative performances by Neena Gupta, Gajraj Rao, Surekha Sikri and some fine writing.

AN ENJOYABLE WATCH !!

RATING - 3/5