Movie Review: ‘Ferrari Ki Sawaari’

��Ferrari ki Sawaari�۪ comes with high expectations with the likes of Aamir Khan backing the film. At the premiere of the film, the actor urged the audience: ���I am here to wish the entire team. I am sure they have made a good film and Sharman is a nice actor and our wishes are with them. We want everyone who watched��3 Idiots��to watch��Ferrari Ki Sawaari also. We wish that this film goes far beyond��3 Idiots.�۝ This is also the directorial debut for Rajesh Mapuskar, who previously was associate director on award-winning film ��3 Idiots�۪ (2009). This film is important for leading actor Sharman Joshi as the actor has a starring role and is the main protagonist. The film has also been hyped up as it has an international first; the cast and crew were lucky enough to shoot scenes at Lord�۪s cricket ground in the UK.

The film is a drama comedy which shows how the pursuit of cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar�۪s Ferrari leads a young boy to fulfil his dreams to play at Lord�۪s. Rustam Deboo (Sharman Joshi) is a middle class Parsi who is so honest that when he skips a traffic light without getting caught, he forces the police to give him a fine. He lives with his ageing father, Deboo (Boman Irani), and Rustam (aka Rusy) barely makes ends meet working as head clerk at the RTO. The only thing Rusy lives for is his son Kayo who has an extraordinary talent for cricket. Where millions of parents think their son is the next Sachin Tendulkar, Rusy is one parent who will do anything to prove to the world that his son truly is the next big cricketing star.

The one thing this film really isn�۪t is a cricket movie; ironic considering it is being promoted by ��Lagaan�۪ (2001) star, Khan.�� This is very much the story of the underdog and it looks carefully at the relationship of father and son and how far a parent will go to fulfil his child�۪s dreams. This doesn’t come as a very big surprise considering the film is written by Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Rajkumar Hirani, who are both��very adept at tackling serious issues in a light-hearted tone. ��3 idiots�۪ looked at the Indian education system with the underdog being an unlikely engineering student. ��Lage Raho Munna Bhai�۪ (2006) was the story of an illiterate gangster who stands up to a rigid medical system and faces the injustices using underhand tactics. In this film, Rusy is the underdog who goes to extreme lengths stealing a Ferrari for money so that his son can have a shot at his cricketing stardom.

The first half of the film is dedicated to Rusy stealing the Ferrari and delivering it to a corrupt politician so that his son can arrive in the car to his wedding. What proceeds are a series of comedic errors where the car goes missing, a wedding goes awry and the secrets of grandfather Deboo are played out. The second half is entirely based around resolving the plot with wit and humour and extraordinary solutions. It has to be said that the first half is less dedicated to cricket than the second half. In fact the film can be split into two subjects, Ferrari and cricket, and each is reinforced by the clear two halves.

Joshi really does need a commendation for this film as he is the star of the show with his naivety and passion for his son�۪s future. Joshi�۪s innocent face does have a lot to do with this but he carries off his role with finesse and plays off Deboo well. Irani acts his usual eccentric Parsi self and supports Joshi�۪s loveable character by reinforcing his bitterness towards his oblivious-to-the-world son. Ritwik Sahore (Kayo), who makes his debut with this movie, could not have been placed in a better film and he does the role justice with a touching monologue at the end of the film. The rest of the cast are very much Mumbai stereotypes; the lazy watchman who is more interested in cricket than watching the gate, the careless servant and the politician�۪s stupid son.

The soundtrack for this film is pretty unremarkable��and you won�۪t really remember the film for the songs. Maare Re is aimed at the cricket loving audience who will surely be singing this at the next big match. The much hyped item song is Mala Jau De featuring Vidya Balan where she lives up to her South Indian roots.

‘Ferrari Ki Sawaari’��has the feel good factor going for it and this is what keeps the audience going. Balan�۪s item song is very misplaced and seems to have been done to attract audiences. As his first lead role after 13 years in the industry, Joshi is the underdog actor and proves his worth. Although this film has had mixed reviews at the box office, it has to be said that it��is not for people expecting a typical masala film. However, if you loved ��3 Idiots�۪, then you will like this film and enjoy the drama that enfolds.

Star rating: 3/5