Sorry Bhai Review
iView Author: Subhasish Chakraborty (Bangalore, India)
Email: subhasish.schakraborty [at] gmail [dot] com
The biggest reason I was looking forward to Sorry Bhai, was Chitrangada Singh and her belated comeback. I expected Sorry Bhai to be a good movie since it has an ensemble cast, an alluring story line, beautiful visuals and a sensitive director.
Well, neither Chitrangada Singh nor the movie actually disappointed. In retrospect, it is actually a good movie. I’d definitely recommend every one to go out and watch it, there’s no doubting that. It’s just that You might have expected a little more. Almost the same happened to me with Rock On also. There was so much expectation. But one thing is for sure. It’s definitely worth a watch. It might not be an astonishing piece of work, but it’s a small little gem, replete with “what could have been!!” but it’s just a block away from “what could have been”.
Technically, the film is good. The cinematography and sound are excellent. Screenplay and dialogues mostly come across as witty. The thing about Sorry Bhai that I liked the most is the genteel humour of the film. It’s a throwback to the Hrishikesh Mukherjee genre. All throughout the movie there’s a genteel humour which is witty and at the same time not over the top or sarcastic.
The casting is really good. Shabana Azmi and Boman Irani form what’s arguably the best Mom-Dad pair in Bollywood. So much so, that the lasting memories of Sorry Bhai are the moments between Shabana and Boman. Especially, in the last scene Boman Irani just transcends acting. They are the corner stone of the movie. Sorry Bhai won’t be one tenth of the movie it is, but for these two people.
Sharman Joshi does a refreshingly different role that frees him from the Bollywood typecast. His innate comic timing with a multilayered and grey characterization is one of the most convincing displays in recent times. Sanjay Suri has very less to do but he does it very well. Infact Sharman and Sanjay just appear irreplaceable in their characters once You’ve seen the movie.
Chitrangada Singh, well, well, what a comeback. She looks prettier and more sensuous than ever. She provides the movie such a lift, it’s very difficult to imagine any one else in her place. But to be honest, I felt she was let down by the script at some places. I believe she needed a few more scenes and better constructed dialogues or monologues to lend credibility to the transition of her emotions. But simply because of her persona and poise, she almost covers the flawed script. Her scenes with Sanjay, Sharman and Shabana are all fine. She’s a little let down in her soliloquies and in the scenes with her room mate. Never the less, looking eagerly for her next essay J
Gauging the reaction of some of the fellow movie goers, it appeared many found Chitrangada’s character overtly unconvincing and promiscuous. But strangely, seeing her character in the movie, I was reminded of a character in flesh and blood. So my feeling is, Onir has pulled in a rare realism and not all might identify with it. But it was refreshing to come out of the copy book good girl Bollywood Barbie doll mould and show some reality.
Over all, seeing Sorry Bhai, If I didn’t feel exhilarated, it’s largely due to the fact that compared to Shabana and Boman’s characters, Chitrangada’s and Sanjay’s characters were not well developed. Somewhere there was a void, which was palpable and which needed to be filled and it happened to be the central story of the movie.
Sorry Bhai has very pleasing humour, sparks from Boman and Shabana, Chitrangada’s ethereal presence and Sharman’s arduous attempt; Some soulful music and a story which is different and likable. (I tried to ignore the “Maa Kasam” thing)
In a way, Sorry Bhai is a lot like Jo Wilfried Tsonga’s tennis, there’s so much beauty, so much allure, but somehow we miss the Sampras punch.
Tags: chitrangada singh, onir, sorry bhai
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
nice review mate.went to see sorry bhai on saturday, chitrangada singh being the reason in earnest.but when i left the theatre,it was just shabana azhmi,s adieu that choked my emotions.its perhaps another refreshing film in the line of movies like DASVIDANIA and KHOSLA KA GHOSLA.boman irani’s acting is impeccable and chitrangada’s character really appears real.a person trying to realize her dreams is not a fairy tale attempt afterall.
Read you article… Saw movie. Completely agree with you. They did everything possible to meet the end…
Boman and Shabana .. too good.
What a review man !! agreeing 100% with every word. I don’t like the idea as such ( brother getting married to one’s fiancee ) but can happen in somebody’s life, aur “isliye” chalta hai ;)
Subhasish- SADLY you reviwed so little about the script and substance in the movie
I really don’t dig why this movie had to be called “SORRY BHAI”…It so miserably fails to move an audience about the level of guilt the character played by sharman would feel..to actually say SORRY BHAI
Moreover, this film falters so badly with the development of “love” b/w the lead pair…In most of the portions of the film, its felt that chitrangada’s character is more physically attracted towards sharman and more so just to get a break from sanjay’s boring and uninteresting life THAN ACTUALLY falling in LOVE with sharman…
The chemistry is right there but the LOVE is so missing….The LOVE which can actually convince her to spend the rest of her life with him!!
It was more like sharman being the brother of sanjay..didnt make a difference at all..Its more like an infidelity story than a SORRY BHAI..
A big big oppurtunity wasted..especially with that kinda cast!!
Well, this movie got everything else perfect, except exploring the main concept of the film.
Too little time between Chitrangada and Sanjay.
Too little time between Chitrangada and Sharman.
You don’t feel how and why they love each other.
It looks rushed up.
Honestly, I didn’t want to take my knives out, seeing the overall battering it got in popular media. It’s not that bad either. I’ve seen a hell lot of crap movies being celebrated by Mr. Rajeev Masand and his ilk. That’s why I don’t criticize honest movies.
@ Subhasish…. hey nice observation…. wont get into contesting anything…. just want you to know some thing. due to a certain high court case regarding a sound track in the film we had to last minute delete some keys scenes and that included the growing relation of attraction/love between sharman n chitrangda…. also her anguish. nearly seven minutes were edited out. which is being put back again as we won the case.
…. just like good reviews dont make me fly…. and it does not destroy me if some silly reviewer says ” do not see the film because it’s UNINDIAN and one should not pay money to see SIN unfold on screen”
Thanks for being kind but i can handle criticism
@ Suparbh…. i do not feel and see it the way you do…. except a lil bit about more time on Sharman chit. I think very often when we watch a film we re direct it ourselves…. I try and not do it…. i like trying to find out what the film maker wants me to see/ n his intentions…. not that i succeed all the time…. but i feel happier watchi g a film like that and i feel less judgemental. there are ways and ways to approach a script…. and the best of films there will be people who find major issues…. and the same thing loved by another. let me tell u i like to look at my work critically…. now when i watch my film with all its flaws… i like what i experience…. and am happy with the film…. would not change much…. because for me i like that there is love but yes there is physical attraction tooo…. so what ! but i appreciate your point of view…. just that i do not feel that way…. sorry
@Onir
A very pleasant movie this one you made! Thanks. We (me and my wife) liked it. I do appreciate your insight into relationships and how you present it.. Keep up the good work..
Definitely couuld have been better, but this is nice too.. somewhere during the movie the threads start to loosen giving me the feeling that I am not ‘inside’ the movie or a part of it, but in a seat in the movie theater… that bothered me.. Thats all..
Cheers!
Waiting for the dvd.
It didn’t release here.
Actually, I wish that the dvds would release in other countries alot sooner, especially if there’s no cinematic release.
Chalo, lets wait and see…
@onir
different people- different expectations- different point of views
All the very best for your future films..hopefully I’ll dig them as you do…
Onir,
I was a little disappointed with the movie. I thought it began well but somehow some scenes seemed disjointed and the development of the story seems rushed especially at the end. The ending is quite mind boggling and at the same time seems contrived and trying to be clever. The music and soundtrack never makes an impression.
The cast was very watchable. Chitrangadha was hot. but I think the screenplay left a lot to be desired.
I was also expecting the dog to fly or some exciting stuff to happen wrt all the talk about it which never happened!!
Onir, I think Sorry Bhai would be a really good movie with a little bit more on developing the Sharman-Chitrangada story as well as Chitrangada alone. With the 7 min addition, hopefully it offers a convincing transition.
Well i liked the movie..but Chintrangda is not that great like she was made out to be…i have seen hazaron and really liked her in that movie and hence expectations were obviously sky high…but somehow in sorry bhai she is strictly ok…i feel she was not able to do justice to her character….also dialogue delivery and overall body language was quite avg….will have to give her a couple of more chances i guess….
Extremely disappointing….
I really liked the movie….i was expecting an average watch after reading the reactions…but, was pleasantly surprised by the movie.
I did not feel that Chitrangadha’s character was in any way less developed than the others…if i had to pick the weakest character in the movie, it would be Sanjay Suri’s. The movie was smartly written and well directed. There is a certain subtleness about the way the film was treated, which made for pleasant viewing, and at the same time, believable.
a nonsense with good picturization
director might be a orphan, having no good relationship of family
I have seen the movie ’sorry bhai’ and the movie is fab.Chitragandha and shrman acted very well especially Chitragandha on-screen emotions were quite lively.Must say She has done full justice with the character she has played and director has shown sensibility by choosing Citragandha for this role.So from my point of view a very nice movie.
Thanks To All You Guys For Appreciating My Film. Watch Out For My Next Unconventional Flick Which Is Based On “Brokeback Mountain” And Will Star Shahrukh Khan And Karan Johar If Everything Goes On Well. It Will Not Feature Any Heroine !!!
Gosh onir, dont do that! mr. bharath (comment #15) might have a stroke if he sees your next film! “you are orphan, having no good relationship of family” ROTFLMAO! :-D