Lage Raho Munnabhai (2006)

Sequels are always looked upon with distrust both by the public and the producers. It’s especially true for such movies which have been successful in achieving cult status and hence raise a lot of expectations from the second portion. Indian film industry is thus very careful and does not believe in making epilogues because of the apprehensions over their triumph at the box office. Lage Raho Munnabhai (Carry On Munnabhai) will eventually break the ice and set an example of a sequel which is larger in canvas and better than the parent movie itself. It’s a runaway success at cinemas when I last read about it in the newspapers.

Unlike other sequels which I have seen, this one doesn’t start from where it ended previously. It’s a new day and a new story in the life of Munna (Sanjay Dutt) and his henchman Circuit (Arshad Warsi). They are back to doing what they do best – kidnapping and threatening people for the goodwill of the common man. But this time, our Munnabhai falls for an RJ called Jahnavi (Vidya Balan) whose “Gooodd Morniiinnggg Mumbaaiiii” catches his fancy and he decides to meet her. Luckily there’s a radio dial-in contest on the great Mahatma which has to be won to catch a glimpse of her, which (obviously) he does using his infamous tricks of the trade. The actual story begins when he is asked to know more about Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the Indian Nation, to give a lecture on the subject to some of Jahnavi’s “old” family friends. His research on the Mahatma virtually transforms him but he finds it difficult to accept the Gandhian views of non-violence and truth, which are in direct conflict with his unlawful business. This basic fact has been exploited in the script and interspersed with humour completely. Consider this scene- he is slapped by a security guard on the orders of Lucky Singh (the magnificent Boman Irani) and he offers the other cheek because Gandhian values preach non-violence. He’s slapped again tightly and everybody looks quietly to see his reaction which is quite predictable. The very next moment, the guard is floored by a massive hit from Munna, which sends him spinning down. His reasoning is that Gandhi didn’t say what to do after both your cheeks have been socked by the opponent. Eventually he realises his folly and his oath of following the Gandhian values and says sorry to the poor unconscious, semi-dead soul. (The guard is probably the same actor who played Kallan and was hit by Munna in the prequel in a song)

The movie is a scriptwriter’s dream come true and Rajkumar Hirani must be given a standing ovation for this. The songs are much better than the prequel (Shantanu Moitra dons the composer’s cap) and there’s one song which is sung by Karunya who was the runner up in the Indian Idol contest called “Aane Char Aane”. You must also listen to “Bande Mein Tha Dum, Vande Mataram”; creatively written and well sung by Sonu Nigam. But I must say that Sanjubaba has started to look older than his last appearance in the role in 2003 and I can’t seem to imagine anyone who can be Munnabhai in the coming years. Which reminds me, what’s next? Bole to…a 3rd part also please?!