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The good news is that Tomar Jonyo doesn’t ape the sing-and-sob melodramas or walk the path of fist-fights and bloodbath.
It’s a cute love story that first-time director and SRFTI graduate Nilanjan Banerjee pulls off with fresh faces, pretty locations and an engaging plot.
Joseph (Rishi), an orphan, works as the chauffeur of a Tollywood actress (Locket Chatterjee) by day and croons at a nightclub by evening. Shriya, pretty but visually-challenged, helps her mother run a flower shop.
Though boy meets girl in the most cliched fashion — Joseph rams his car into Ankhi, she falls down with her basket of flowers, and sparks fly between the two — the romance does spring a surprise or two. First, Joseph pretends to be rich boy Aditya in order to impress Shriya. He becomes a party to his boss’s kidnapping to get money for his sweetheart’s eye treatment.
Next, Joseph surrenders to the cops. Ankhi gets back her vision. The lovers part ways.
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Fast forward four years. Ankhi has shed her salwar-kameez-dupatta to run a high-end boutique. Though she pines for her lost love now and then, Ankhi has found a new suitor, in the rich and nice Rahul (Subrat Dutta). The twist in the tale? Rahul hires Joseph as his driver!
Rishi puts up a decent act though he’s a tad trite at times. Shriya doesn’t have to try hard to look coy. Soumitra Chatterjee has a walk-on part of a church priest who raises Joseph.
The taut treatment, the highs and lows in the storyline and a sensible dose of humour help keep the film afloat.
Jolly Mukherjee’s music has the touch of a breezy romance; the sets are smart and chic, the outdoors scenic and pleasing.
So, even if the story has a deja vu feel, there’s enough to smile about with a popcorn packet in hand.