Did you do check the engine before moving out? Did you realize you were the only person checking in the hotel? Did you do your homework today? Are you scared of Apples? Did you think you could scare someone by saying you are a ghost? Did you think you could stop the world? Did you think you could get scared?
If you answer YES to all the questions above, then you probably don’t need to see Darna Mana Hain and give this review a skip. You probably wouldn’t even be alive at this moment to regret it. If you answered NO then you are probably still sane, and in the sane world. If you answered YES and NO to few questions, then chances are, you are writing the next question above.
While RGV always howls that he tries to be creative and always proves he is creative, this time he goes one step further. I admit, this is certainly by far the most experimental movie in Hindi Cinema that I have witnessed. Now since its different and creative, many critics will of course bash away the movie. Of course had this movie been in English with a funky title like Six Friends On a Spooky Night or Night of the Ghosts, then of course we would be praising the movies to sky. But that’s besides the point – the point is there is no point in trying to analyze this movie as a whole. You can’t.
While most of the stories have the Stephen King touch to it (especially the Hotel episode), for most parts, the movie is whimsical and entertaining. The basic plot isn’t really that deep or complex to speak of – instead the sub plots keep you guessing and hissing till the end. While some stories are spooky enough, few cross the lines of realism (if there is any in spooky movie that is) and manage to keep you entertained. Inane as it sounds, the apple story had me hooked – especially the scene when the hubby opens his wide mouth to swallow one. Most of the stories are around 20 minutes or so, which is a perfectly right combination before you begin to get bored of it.
Performances wise, the movie boasts of superb casting and all of them do their job pretty well – in fact, they do it superbly enough to speak of. Samira Reddy looks hot enough to be spared by any ghost; while the rest of the cast do their job amicably. The music is taut and just right for this movie. The direction is superb, and there are no two ways about it. It’s the treatment given to each story and the length of it which makes the movie more enjoyable.
I couldn’t help but notice some inane reviews on the net for this movie. I wonder what constitutes as different in Hindi movies. Being different in Indian movies has its own boundaries. A heroine may do a different role, even if she is playing a bubbly girl in one movie and down to earth happy go lucky girl in another; when in fact she is the same in both. Similarly, 2 women going gaga over 1 boy and vice versa has been molded into several thousand interesting twists to make them look and feel different. However when a movie like Darna Mana Hain comes out and defies all norms of Hindi movies, suddenly the same people attain a state of the critic to emphasize exactly what scenes were wrong in the movie and why it isn’t such a good movie. I wonder when will we truly have a different but not different movie – if at all such a genre exists.
Coming to this movie – the movie has it all that the latest buzzword that Bollywood uses with indifference – different. Yes, this movie is bizarre, its story range from great to bizarre, and it’s a new way of making films – so its time we too rejoice again! The good part is the movie manages to hold you interest till the very end. You don’t come out of the movie feeling disgusted, if not feeling supremely happy too.
There is just one catch however to the movie, and while it’s the most important question you did ask yourself while entering the theatre, its also the most useless one – Will I get scared? That’s pretty much for you to find out.