Om Shanti Om

Om Shanti Om proves that the Hindi film industry is capable of poking fun at itself; that it is one big, fun-loving family that doesn't take itself too seriously. And watching a film where everybody involved had so much fun, it is difficult for us not to share in it. Some parts of the film, especially when it starts getting all serious, don't work as well as others but a sense of fun is prevalent throughout, making it a light-hearted, fun entertainer.

OSO is fun mainly because of Bollywood's ability to take a joke. Everything from the actors' images, both on-screen and off-screen, to the industry's tendency to stick to cookie-cutter films to our films' over-sentimental take on romance is spoofed in delightful fashion. And the participation of almost all the actors in all of this makes sure that the proceedings seem good-natured rather than mean-spirited(as in some scenes in Mahaanadigan). The Filmfare awards function is when this aspect of the film is most obvious and so it is one of the highlights of the film itself. Whether it is Shabana Azmi talking about her social causes or a bunch of actresses - and an actor - talking about their relationship with Om Kapoor or Abishek showing, rather openly, his disappointment over losing the award or all the actors taking part in the Deewangi... song sequence, the segment is a blast.

This sense of fun is evident almost the entire first half, when the movie is set in in the 70s. Making full use of the time period and the Bollywood setting, Farah Khan peppers the film with in-jokes and references to popular films. Taking the Forrest Gump route(as when Gump is shown responsible for Elvis' dance moves and the smiley face, among other things), she even throws in imaginative and hilarious re-interpretations of cinematic history(like Sooraj Barjatya taking notes for a popular dialog). Seeing the younger versions of the actors is fun too and Farah's attention to detail is evident when a women swoons at the movie premiere on seeing Mithun doing his Disco Dancer moves and 30 years later, a woman - maybe the same woman? - swoons when he dances in the Deewane... song too!

The film becomes serious once it moves to the present and delves into re-incarnation and revenge. In fact, it comes close to becoming the kind of film it was spoofing but what moves it away it is the self-awareness that is evident throughout. It does seem to take itself seriously but there are occasional hints - like the one where Shreyas complains that Kiron Kher overacts and Shah Rukh brushes it away with a "that runs in our family"! - that leads us to believe that Farah is simply paying homage to those kind of films rather than inadvertently making one herself. In fact, the opening scene that puts SRK as one of the extras in the Om Shanti Om... number from Karz(the original of Kamal's EnakkuL Oruvan), probably the most well-known 're-incarnation movie' could probably be considered the biggest hint of the movie's intentions and direction. And it never deviates from these.

Shah Rukh is just perfect for the role. His typical hamming serves his role well and there are particular scenes, like the Tamil film shooting and the segment where he is unable to utter all those perfect sentences his brain is forming, where he is downright hilarious. Deepika Padukone is the find of the last few years. Radiant and gorgeous, she is every inch the dream girl she portrays. The final scene of the climax where they look at each other, inspite of being completely predictable, works beautifully entirely due to these two actors. Shreyas provides good support and his character works well as a calming force amongst all the zaniness.