Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety. It always takes me a couple of desperate clicks at the backspace key to get the name of this film right. But that’s not really the biggest challenge of Luv Ranjan’s latest outing that continues the tradition of the Pyaar Ka Punchnama films, the franchise that’s almost made misogyny into a genre. Like the two Pyaar Ka Punchnama films — both of which have managed to laugh their way to the bank by being critical of women — Ranjan also makes this one a 140-minute tirade against women, tarring them with the same predictable brush… conniving and scheming gold-diggers who are out to take men for a ride. For in Ranjan’s world, a girl can’t be simple and sweet, even if she’s called Sweety.
Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety takes forward the bro-vs-bae template established by the Punchnama films, but cranks up the ‘bromance’ bits a few notches. Here, Sweety (Nushrat Bharucha) is actually the third wheel in the “Fevicol se bhi mazboot” friendship between childhood buddies Sonu (Kartik Aaryan) and Titu (Sunny Singh). Titu is a man-child, the kind who gets into relationships on the rebound and has to be frequently “saved” from manipulative girlfriends by Sonu.
Sonu walks in and out of Titu’s family home, the two share a bachelor pad together and he even calls Titu’s mom “Mummy”. The nouveau riche khandaan — whose patriarch Ghasita (Alok Nath) has built a sweetmeat empire called ‘Ghasitaaz’ by selling laddoos — is a bunch of quirky individuals and their antics, along with the Sonu-Titu bromance, keeps the first hour alive.
Sonu finds his “paradise” crumbling the moment Titu agrees to an arranged marriage with Sweety. “Kya main tere liye kum padh gaya hoon?” Sonu asks Titu in desperation and you sit up in your seat and wonder if mainstream Hindi cinema is going to take a giant leap for “man”kind.
But the two men — in true Punchnama style — are heterosexuals, with Sonu’s protective instincts towards his friend, combined with his meninist outlook, cited as the reasons that make him wary of any woman who dares to even come close to Titu.
Sweety, who quickly wins over the family with her “sanskaari” walk and talk, is no pushover and the Sonu-Sweety game of one-upmanship does make you chuckle a couple of times in the first half. But because this is a film of the boys, by the boys and for the boys, the girl quickly reveals her true colours — “Main heroine nahin, villain hoon,” she declares triumphantly even as Nayak nahin, khalnayak hoon main plays in the background.
And even as Sonu and Sweety do all they can to outwit and outsmart the other — Sonu brings in Titu’s ex-girlfriend to break the engagement, Sweety plays the victim card — the fireworks quickly fizzle out in Half Two and the film limps towards a climax where Titu has to choose between “dosti” and “ladki”. If you have watched the Punchnama films, you will know how this ends.
Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, however, falls short of being offensive because of the lightness of touch that characterise these films. You know you are in it for some laughs and are most likely to forget all about it once you are out of the theatre.
Despite the predictability in theme and treatment — Ranjan basically makes the same film every time — the ensemble cast makes Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety worth a watch. The pick of the lot is Alok Nath’s Ghasita. This is his most “un-sanskaari” role yet and the man is a delight, swigging from a hip flask and mouthing the choicest of expletives. And his expression is priceless when a bikini-clad PYT does “pairi pona”.
You’ll want to walk in for Kartik Aaryan, who’s made a career out of these films. To his credit, Kartik is in fine form here, playing Sonu with relish, though he doesn’t have a Punchnama-style monologue here. But does he need one? The film, itself, is one long rant.
What did you like/didn’t like about Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety? Tell t2@abp.in
