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By Joginder Tuteja, October 19, 2009 - 00:29 IST
MOVIE DETAILS
Cast: Mithun Chakraborty, Dimple Kapadia, Gulshan Grover, Rati Agnihotri
Director: V.K. Prakash
Producer: Culture Company Pvt. Ltd.
Music: Shantanu Moitra
Lyrics: Ajay Jhingran, Ashok Mishra, Swanand Kirkire
THE FILM
One is quite skeptical about playing Phir Kabhi on DVD for the sheer reason that it has been directly on home video. There haven't been many Bollywood movies in the past that have made a straight entry into the living rooms without going through the cinema route. Due to this, it is quite obvious to be doubtful about the prospects of a movie. An immediate question that comes to the mind is - 'Were the makers themselves apprehensive about the response that the film would generate in theaters? Otherwise why would they have made the film for cinema (Phir Kabhi is not a tele film) but opted for a DVD and satellite release?'
The film tells the story of Mithun Chakraborty, a middle class man who is way past his prime and is living a retired life. He turns lonely after the death of his wife (Rati Agnihotri) - this happens quite early in the film - and circumstances bring him face to face with his first love (Dimple Kapadia) from school days. Usual conflicts follow with his friends (Tinu Verma, Gulshan Grover) pushing him to reunite with his first love, his daughter-in-law (Kitu Gidwani) being shocked with his liaison while his grand daughter fights it out for him.
While the film's end is anyone's guess, the only difference between Phir Kabhi and any other film belonging to the same subject is that the lead protagonist here comes across as quite weak. In this regard, Mithun is quite exceptional (as he always has been in roles that are worthy enough) and never gets out of the character. Always dependant upon others to make decisions for him, whether his parents during his childhood, his wife in those 40 odd years or now his friends and relatives, he never ever takes hold of his life.
This trait of his remains till the very end of Phir Kabhi that has an out and out filmy culmination to it. In fact there is even a 'Jaa Simran Jaa' moment, something which is more comical than heart warming, where Kitu Gidwani becomes Amrish Puri, Mithun Chakraborty wears the hat of Kajol and Dimple Kapadia is sitting inside the train compartment while being completely oblivious of the conflict taking place outside on the platform.
Leaving aside this particular segment of the film, what only adds to the length of the film is the entire romantic angle between Mithun's granddaughter and a young boy. Agreed that makers would have wanted the film to reach out to younger crowds as well but most of the sequences involving the two, especially the songs, are so boring and unnecessary that they come across as unwanted intrusions.
Even otherwise, the coming together of Mithun and Dimple also doesn't quite bring in terrific sparks and for most of the times is plain monotonous. Tinu Verma's side track with some comic moments doesn't work either though Gulshan Grover does light up the scene every time he appears on screen. His confrontation with Kitu Gidwani towards the pre-climax is short but quite effective.
In the end, Phir Kabhi completely belongs to Mithun Chakravorty and that too because of veteran's acting prowess more than the script by itself. He makes sure that he keeps the audiences reasonably interested by being the character that he is required to play.
PACKAGING
DVD of Phir Kabhi comes in a regular plastic case. Surprisingly UTV Motion Pictures, co-producers of the film, don't find a mention on the DVD cover.
DURATION
The film's duration is 131 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES
None
TECHNICAL DETAILS
- 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen Presentation
- Subtitles in English
- Dolby Digital 5.1 and Stereo
PRICE
Rs. 99/=
CONCLUSION
On playing Phir Kabhi, one realises within first 20 odd minutes that not releasing the film in theaters was a wise move by the makers. The film's theme is such that it would go down well mainly with the family audiences but there too it would appeal to a select set of audiences, mainly the elderly segment. Moreover, even for this segment, the film doesn't quite bring with it the kind of impact that a Baghban or a Viruddh or an Avtar had made years ago. At maximum, Phir Kabhi turns out to be a passable film that is quite harmless and can be given a lazy watch, but that's about it.
 
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