On this edition of our weekend recommendation for your entertainment and unwinding, is a timeless cult comedy by a genius storyteller. “Hera Pheri”, Priyadarshan's 2000 Bollywood remake of Malayalam film “Ramji Rao Speaking” did not open well at the theatres, but picked up enough momentum to make Rs 100 Crores in India, and is regarded one of the best comedy films of the language. Paresh Rawal went on to win three major awards for his role as Baburao Ganpatrao Apte, Sunil Shetty and Akshay Kumar -- till then labeled action heroes -- brought out a lighter side to them, while Tabu played a brilliant supporting role of the quintessential middle-class girl, and Gulshan Grover fit in like a puzzle-piece into an outright comedy without giving up any of his menacing villain demeanour.
What blends the story so well and hooks the audience is the unlikeliest of connections made in the story-line; minute details fall into places extremely well in a storyboard laid out expertly, and seemingly random incidents go on to hold significance later in the timeline. Although referred to as a comedy film, “Hera Pheri” technically is a tragicomedy, and the touching stories of the main characters' back-stories are put in the mix seamlessly, taking the audience on an emotional roller-coaster. The sparing but striking chemistry between Shyam (Sunil Shetty) and Anuradha (Tabu) also adds greatly to the screenplay.
Dialogues are one of the strong suites of this film; be it Baburao's snappy sarcastic remarks, Khadak Singh's (played by the brilliant Om Puri) rural-accented punches or Raju's (Akshay Kumar) witty banter, the dialogues are impeccable. And Priyadarshan's signature chaos at the end, blending in confusion to the verge of anarchy in a hysterical, fast-paced intertwine just adds the icing on the treat.
The film's success prompted a sequel, “Phir Hera Pheri” (2006) while a third film of the franchise, titled “Hera Pheri 4”, is said to be in pre-production.
Even if you've watched it before, it is one film you can safely turn to for a good time with friends and family on a relaxed weekend afternoon. The appeal of "Hera Pheri" has a very flat curve of diminishing marginal (entertainment) utility.