Chala Mussaddi - Office Office Hindi Movie
Comedy and Action are two hot selling genres of Hindi cinema and filmmakers are always in a lookout for scripts providing either of the two. So much so that they have also turned to small screen for inspiration. So while the celluloid adaptation of super hit comedy show Khichdi received thunderous response from cine-goers and the film turned out to be an instant hit, it only remains to be seen what will be the fate of yet another TV Show Office Office that goes on to make it to the big screen.
The film starts with a cop asking Musaddi Lal what's his crime. His reply - that he is a common man. It then goes into a flashback where retired school master Musaddi Lal Tripathi (Pankaj Kapur) goes on a pilgrimage to fulfil his dead wife Shanti's (Farida Jalal) last wish of immersing her ashes in 4 holy sites. He comes back after 3 months only to realise that his pension is stopped. He goes to the pension office to find out about it and much to his agony gets to know that he is declared dead in their records. How he claims himself to be alive and how he deals with corrupt bureaucrats like Patel (Deven Bhojani), Bhatiya (Manoj Pahwa), Shukla (Sanjay Sharma), Pandey oops Pandeyji (Hemant Pandey) and Ushaji (Asawari Joshi) is what follows through the rest of the plot.
With having a huge fan base for Office Office, pulling the mass to the ticket windows isn't really an ordeal. But the challenging task is to not let them leave the cinema hall disappointed. Maybe, filmmaker Rajiv Mehra gets bogged down by this pressure itself and ends up making a trite film. Despite having brilliant comic timing between all the actors, the film turns out to be disappointing and the entire blame goes to the script. With almost every story or bureaucratic department being covered in the serial itself, the film ends up re-creating a story that was already aired on the small screen as one of the episodes. The only advantage Rajiv gets is that his story of pension still remains relevant in the corrupt system of India.
There are a few jokes here and there that too a few giggles but they don't have a lasting effect and the weight of sitting through the entire film comes down heavy on the audience. Also the length of the film is an issue. The climax appears to be going on for eternity and ends up leaving the viewer exhausted. Had it been for crisp editing the film could've been better.
On the brighter side, all the characters are as humorous as before and it's a delight watching them. Even the new inclusion Gaurav Kapur as Musaddi Lal's son Bunty delivers a great performance. The setting of Delhi is subtle and endearing.
To sum it up, Chala Musaddi Office Office is a disappointing fare with having nothing new to offer.
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