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Following the lead of most things filmed in Miami, and more particularly, South Beach, “Dostana”’s opening shot is a swooping view of the skyline seen from the ocean, before it darts over the swaying palms and the crayon-box colours of Ocean Drive Art Deco. With this formality out of the way, we are treated to the industrial-strength sex appeal of Shilpa Shetty cavorting in turquoise waves with a bevy of toned and tawny babes and guys. She slithers and shimmies around the two heroes, Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham, who enthusiastically appreciate her attentions. When the night’s bacchanal ends, each of the men wakes up beside a pretty girl. This is to vehemently establish the hetero status of the male leads for—ladies and gentlemen—they will spend the rest of the film portraying each other’s boyfriend in what is being marketed as India’s first gay comedy. How it can be called a gay comedy, when the characters themselves aren’t might be moot, but it’s a fairly entertaining one. “Isn’t it quite the leap from the “It’s all about loving your parents.”—tagline of “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham” to “It’s all about loving your same-sex partner.” in “Dostana”?” a cheeky journalist asked producer Karan Johar. With admirable verbal agility, Johar shot back, “It’s still all about loving. Whom you choose to love and how is up to you!”
Filled with lust for affordable housing, Sam (Abhishek) and Kunal (John) play gay to beat the “female tenants only” rule of the owners—a comical Sindhi matron and her niece—of a sumptuous beachfront apartment with two rooms to let.
When the niece Neha Melwani (Priyanka Chopra) shows up, Aunty announces she’s found the safest roommates to share the sprawling premises and split the mortgage. With typical Indian squeamishness about sexuality, she says to the girl, “They’re not like us--they’re, er, different.” “You mean they’re not Sindhi?” “No, they’re, um, modern.” “So are we!” retorts the niece. So Aunty, red-faced, comes clean: “They are each other’s boyfriend-girlfriend.” “Why didn’t you just say gay?” says her with-it niece. Such exchanges characterize this deliciously satirical, moderately racy look at Indian manners and mores. The comedy springs from the generational divide and the peculiarly Indian mania for maintaining social niceties even when it is excruciatingly painful to pretend.
The first act unfolds briskly. When the two guys discover the niece is both hot AND single, they realize upholding their deception will be impossible. About to confess the truth, they hear that applications for permanent resident status by same-sex couples are fast-tracked, so they keep up their charade. This might be bending the truth about how US Immigration functions for cinematic purposes, so don’t rush off yet to the nearest US embassy or consulate clutching the hand of your real or pretend same-sex partner. Even California—generally known as the land of fruits and nuts—recently voted for Proposition 8 against same-gender unions; similar anti-gay marriage amendments were passed in Arizona and Florida. But that’s too much reality for a commercial Hindi film, and there’s no place for it here.
Close proximity and shared quarters result in a sweet friendship between the three leads: Neha and the boys hang out, go shopping (as all girls and their gay best friends must), and watch scary movies together. Naturally, both guys fall in love with her. An additional complication arrives in the person of Neha’s hunky new boss (Bobby Deol), resulting in some problematical geometry: the romantic triangle turns into a romantic rectangle. When Sam and Kunal attempt to sabotage her budding romance with the boss, smart cookie Neha concludes that the guys are doing it because they have the hots for—get this—the boss.
So far, so good. The action flags in the second act, as the spy-versus-spy tactics get a bit repetitive, but the mood remains genial and ingratiating right up to the unanticipated resolution.
The humour is seldom mean-spirited, while a couple of scenes are truly inspired. The scene with Neha’s gay former boss (Boman Irani), the mother of one of the boys—and a swishy US Immigration official doing a truth-check on our “gay” couple—all showing up at the apartment at the same time qualifies as high farce. Another marvellously nonsensical scene has the guys debating possible gay sub-texts in old Hindi movies.
Remarkably, this mainstream film steadfastly resists—all the way through—from revealing to the mother that her son is really straight, and she must make her peace with his homosexuality. The ever-reliable Kirron Kher plays the drama queen Punjabi mother with a touching blend of the comic and poignant.
Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham excel as Sam and Kunal. John gets as much attention from the cinematographer as Shilpa and Priyanka, and he happily flaunts his well-muscled body. His character is amiable, not terribly bright, and thrilled at being a fashion photographer. This is John’s first time being showcased in a big-budget film, and he doesn’t disappoint. Abhishek does not boast the kind of physique as John, but his male nurse character is the quicker, cleverer one, and gets to deliver most of the film’s zingers. The two convincingly portray the strong friendship at the film’s core and have wonderful chemistry together. Priyanka, happily relieved of the angst and ignominy of playing a disaster-bound super model, as she did in her last outing in “Fashion”, basks in the attentions of three dashing men, and glows for it. She reveals an unexpected flair for comedy. Neha must look like someone three grown men would fight over, and Priyanka is up to the challenge. Her athleticism and slim, toned bod are displayed to advantage in great little outfits, carried off superbly. Bobby Deol, the restrained, chivalrous straight man—no pun here—to the more flamboyant Abhishek and John, is dignified. I loved the ogre Aunty (Sushmita Mukherjee) with fashion-model delusions, age-inappropriate clothing and too much makeup, but actually a softie at heart.
I wondered just how long it would be before the Hindi film industry—in its ongoing search for new locations to tempt the blasé NRI eye—discovered the hedonistic charms of South Beach. (NRI: The Non-Resident Indian—toward whom most recent commercial Indian films appear to be aimed.) The candy-coloured splendour of South Beach is the ideal backdrop for this film. It was memorably the setting for another gender-bending comedy, “The Birdcage”, which despite the combined skills of writer Elaine May, director Mike Nichols, and a gifted cast did not measure up to the farcical genius of the French original “La Cage aux Folles”.
First-time director Tarun Mansukhani makes a confident debut, keeping things light and frothy, and steering away from too much sentimentality, although some judicious excision from the film’s middle would have helped. The film’s music (Vishal-Shekhar) is appropriately bouncy to reflect a cast of characters in a state of arrested adolescence. My favourite song, the rueful “Kuch kum” with lovely lyrics achingly sung by Shaan plays in the background.
Interestingly, most of the film’s dialogue is in English, reinforcing the notion that Hindi films are increasingly made for an urban and/or foreign audience. Another telling fact is that Karan Johar sets his more controversial films in the US: his adultery-themed drama “Kabhie Alvida Na Kehna” took place in New York; now with the gay-friendly “Dostana” also set in America, one wonders if this is a significant clue to any cultural righteousness. Is the permissive or progressive (depends on your point of view) US of A Karan Johar’s geographical escape hatch? Is he saying “Yes, Shah Rukh and Rani had an adulterous affair, but their characters were American, and that sort of thing happens there all the time” or “It’s okay to be gay, but that would only fly in the West.”? No doubt, Karan Johar will explain this away with some nimble quip, but it does beg the question.
I enjoyed “Dostana” for what it was, but look forward to when it will be possible to review a serious, thought-provoking film like “A Wednesday” on the same day that it opens in India. I’ve read the critical raves, but such films seldom find theatrical release in North America. We have to wait for months to catch it on DVD. Sex sells, baby, and we’ll never lack for a “Dostana” as long as that holds true!
What I liked about the movie:
Some great dialogue, and the humour is seldom mean-spirited.
What I didn't like about the movie:
It could have been edited more tightly.
Would you recommend this movie to your friend: Yes
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