Gulabo Sitabo

GULABO SITABO is endearingly funny, and a worthy satire!

With authentic local language, old-world visual charm, consistently sharp drollness, and some high quality performances from its leads, GULABO SITABO is an enjoyable watch. The film’s main strength lies in its terrific writing by Juhi Chaturvedi, who brings out yet another quirky piece of drama. It’s a simple film which is sure to bring a smile to your face, and therefore totally worth a watch!

In GULABO SITABO, the age old fight between a landlord and a tenant comes to a head in this slice of life story, as the former considers selling his beloved house in order to get rid of the latter.

Just minutes into the film, and you find yourself chuckling to every little Lucknow-accent dialogue that the actors utter, and this keeps you engaged for all of its nearly two hours of runtime. The humour is mostly subtle and you’d never find yourself laughing out loud, but believe me, it’s those constant chuckles that make it an enjoyable watch. Each character is well-penned and extremely riveting. The constant tussle of one-upmanship over petty issues between Mirza and Baankey make it fun.

But scrubbing deep into the surficial buffoonery, you find several key satirical elements – the evanescence of youth and material posessions, the sad eventuality of greed, the power of women today (Phatima Begum and Guddo turning tables on men), and the frequent exploitation of the poor in India. These poignant issues are subtly raised in the garb of some harmless drollery. You may complain of lack of heft in the narrative, but perhaps that’s the way it was meant to be – an adorable slice-of-life drama. Director Shoojit Sircar does a great job as usual, but the real star of this film is the writer Juhi Chaturvedi, who keeps bringing out one gem after another.

Amitabh Bachchan’s portrayal of Mirza, a 78-year old man living at the mercy of her 95-year old wife in her even older dilapidated palatial house in Lucknow,  is simply brilliant. He’s pitch perfect with his act and you simply love watching him. Specially the scenes which inflict forthright insult on Mirza are absolutely hilarious. The other terrific actor who stands against him and shines equally bright, is Ayushmann Khurrana, who makes his character look and feel so real, that it’s hard to dissociate him from Baankey, the role he plays. He matches the great Bachchan in fine style. Vijay Raaz, Brijendra Kala, Farrukh Jaffer and Shrishti Shrivastava are truly amazing too.

To sum up, GULABO SITABO is a film with a heart and soul, although not much of a plot. However, it’s an adorable film totally worth your time, which you can watch at your own convenience on Amazon Prime Video, in the comfort of your home!