No kidding!

Sukanya Verma

What happens when a dumb simpleton, a dumber city girl and a frolicking baby elephant come together?

Raja Ko Rani Se Pyar Ho Gaya.

Touted as a fantasy-filled entertainer for kids and adults alike, RKRSPHG doesn't quite strike the right note. Let's see why...

After being fed a daily dose of fairy tales from his affectionate grandmother (Dina Pathak), Mohit (Arvind Swamy), finds it impossible to cut himself from his utopian fantasies. According to one such reverie, Mohit will find his dream girl underwater. One fine day, as expected, he finds himself rescuing a city-based girl named Manisha (Manisha Koirala) from drowning.

Convinced that she is the 'one' for him, he cooks up an excuse to bring back their missing wooden elephant (which holds great significance to his family's fortunes) from Bombay, by making his family think that Manisha flicked it.

It's altogether a different matter that the symbolic elephant idol is very much safe with Mohit himself.

Once in Bombay, more confusion, chaos and madness come in the form of Mohit's big bro Rohit's (Dilip Dhawan) three over enthusiastic kids. Mohit and kids trace Manisha and become friendly.

Happily ever after? Not quite!

Manisha accidentally breaks the wooden elephant and makes up for it by sending a lively baby elephant Appu. Follows a series of adventures of Appu and the kiddy gang. Finally, after wasting two and half hours, Mohit proposes to Manisha.

Happily ever after?

*Yawn* Not yet.

Well, you see Manisha is nursing a deep dark secret. Does Mohit get his princess charming? Figure it out for yourself.

RKRSPHG lacks logic, sensibility and credibility in large proportions. Script and screenplay are packed with glitches and loopholes.

Whenever it suits the makers, Mohit is illiterate and vice versa. They show a perpetually winking and grinning Appu (thanks to computer animation) parading in and out of a fourth floor house, as if he was George of the jungle.

The story, treatment, music and the general feeling of the film is outdated. Obviously, since the film has been in the making for more than three years. Its release was delayed because animal activist Maneka Gandhi objected to the scene where Manisha Koirala plays with Appu's tail.

In terms of performance, Arvind Swamy doesn't look convincing as a childish boy who refuses to come out of the dream world. Also, he repeats the same look he had in Priyadarshan's Saat Rang Ke Sapne.

The dearth of a well-defined character makes Manisha Koirala's role insignificant. A tasteless wardrobe and being grossly overweight doesn't help. Pity, since the Nepali beauty has one of the most classic faces in the industry.

Jatin-Lalit's music is average. Ravi K Chandran shines again and proves his mastery in capturing scenic beauty.

Honestly, Raja Ko Rani Se Pyar Ho Gaya is a boring film that evokes more yawns than laughs. This one's for all you insomniacs out there.

CREDITS

Cast: Arvind Swamy, Manisha Koirala, Appu - the baby elephant, Tanvi Azmi, Dilip Dhawan, Priya Tendulkar, Dina Pathak, Goga Kapoor, Rakesh Bedi and Shahbaaz Khan
Story, Screenplay, Direction: T K Rajeev Kumar
Producer: Shogun Films Ltd
Cinematography: Ravi K Chandran
Art: Sabu Cyril
Editor: Sreekar Prasad
Special effects supervisor: Prakash Moorthy
Music: Jatin-Lalit
Lyrics: Javed Akhtar