Lochya Zaala Re review: This Ankush Chaudhari-, Siddharth Jadhav-starrer is only for the target audience

Slapstick comedies with an ensemble cast generally involve fooling someone and then stretching oneself to cover up the lie using many more lies. Filmmakers like David Dhawan, Rohit Shetty and Anees Bazmee have successfully handled this genre in mainstream Hindi cinema.

Filmmaker duo Paritosh Painter and Ravi Adhikari have now attempted the genre in Marathi with Lochya Zaala Re. The trailer gave an indication that the film belongs to the same league as the Housefull (2004) franchise. But it is an adaptation of Suresh Jayram’s superhit Marathi play Pati Sagle Uchapati, which was later adapted in Hindi and English as well.

Aditya (Ankush Chaudhari) has been brought up by his uncle (Sayaji Shinde), a wealthy industrialist in Satara, Maharashtra. When Aditya expresses a desire to live far away in Birmingham in England, his uncle, who always agrees to his demands, gives him enough money to buy a bungalow there and, on top of that, sends him pocket money each month to live a carefree life.

When Aditya becomes greedy for more, he lies to his uncle about having married an imaginary young woman named Pooja. His uncle increases his pocket money allowance without question. But all hell breaks loose when the industrlalist lands up suddenly at his place in Birmingham.

At the time, Aditya’s close friend Manav (Siddharth Jadhav) and his wife Dimple (Vaidehi Parshurami) are present at the bungalow to celebrate their wedding anniversary. Circumstances force the couple to unwillingly become a part of Aditya’s lies.

What works for Lochya Zaala Re is the fast-paced narrative and short runtime of just 109 minutes. The film gets on the path of humour early on. Not much time is wasted before Aditya’s uncle lands up in the main scene. The way Manav and Dimple’s characters are forced to become part of Aditya’s lie is quite natural and filled with humorous dialogues. The film raises expectations after a hilarious interval point.

A major challenge in such films is to keep the momentum going in the second half and this is where Lochya Zaala Re also falters. There is not much of a storyline to narrate after the interval. This part also contains repetitive scenes of the three characters trying to keep up with their lie.

Rohit Shetty had made All The Best: Fun Begins (2009) in Hindi on the same basic storyline, though with some changes and more subplots. So it is surprising to see the same story being tried in Marathi after a dozen years, especially when the 2009 movie did well in theatres and has been seen regularly on television.

The performances evoke laughter even in the second half when things aren’t that smooth as far as the plot goes. Ankush Chaudhari and Vaidehi Parshurami, while staying true to their natural selves, have succeeded in portraying subdued humour. Siddharth Jadhav has a completely different style and is far more expressive. There are moments when he appears over-the-top, but it can’t be denied that he is the funniest of them all.

Over the years, Sayaji Shinde has got stereotyped as a villainous sort in Marathi, Hindi and even Southern cinema. So it is refreshing to see him play an out-and-out comical character and do a fairly good job of it, too. Vijay Patkar does what he knows the best and makes an impact despite having just two scenes.

All in all, Lochya Zaala Re is for those who prefer crazy entertainers where the topmost organ is given a rest.