Jannat Movie Review

This is not cricket!

Jannat Movie Review byRaju Shanbhag

It’s funny when you come to think of it. In a country where Harbhajan’s slap to Sreesanth gets more coverage than thousands of people who died in Myanmar, there have been very few films made on cricket. Dev Anand tried it in Awwal Number, after watching which, one felt that a test match between Kenya and Zimbabwe was more exciting prospect. Then came Amir Khan’s Lagaan, which was all about a group of dhoti clad no-hopers winning an one day match where the hero slams the last ball for six, too much of Bollywood! Then came few movies like Iqbal & Chain Kulii Ki Main Kulii. But none were impressive.

Now, Mahesh Bhat’s camp promises to take a fresh look at the game with Jannat. Jannat promises to reveal all about the world of cricket betting. But unfortunately, after watching the film, you feel like watching a promising cricket match that was washed out before it started. Jannat reveals nothing new about the cricket betting. There is a very clear lack of research on part of the writer who might have just grabbed a newspaper or two and decided throw a film on cricket betting on the face of the viewer.

It’s not as if the film never mentions cricket betting. Since the protagonist happens to be a bookie, the director is forced to include some scenes about cricket betting, whenever he gets time to do so. There are veiled but obvious references to a former India captain who married a failed Bollywood actress, a former player from Punjab who is known more for his knowledge of idioms than his cricketing achievements, and the ill fated coach of our neighboring mulk who recently died in West Indies. Big deal!

The film never delves deep into the ugly world of cricket betting. The director and the writer did not think it is necessary to carry on some research before making a film on a subject on which there are at least a billion self proclaimed ‘experts’. How do bookies fix an entire team? When they tell the team exactly how many runs they should score, how do the teams manage it? Are the tosses fixed too? What if any one player does not cooperate? Nopes, director Kunal Deshmukh has no time for such silly details; instead, he drills endlessly about the love affair of hot headed guy and a pretty lasso (yes! You don’t get fine legs only in cricket!). The hero is a bookie, but it wouldn’t have made any difference if he was a smuggler or an underworld don, or both, or none.

Jannat is no Chak De India and Emran Hashmi is no Sha Rukh Khan. The only comparison that can be drawn between the film and cricket is that the film fails miserably after generating lots of hype, just like our Indian cricket team! Mahesh Bhat camp’s fascination to attach a turbulent love story to anything they do is evident in this film too, which spoils the film considerably. Newcomer Sonal Chauhan does a good job making sad faces at her boyfriend who keeps on showering expensive gifts on her. The love is story is predictable and so is Emran Hashmi. It’s just another film for the actor which showcases him on foreign locales and with pretty looking newcomers, just as usual.

Would the protagonist, who happens to be a bookie, bet on this film to win? Guess he loves his money too much to do that!

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