Before moving on to the review, let me clarify two major points used in the film’s promotional campaign by its makers which is bound to give you a slightly wrong idea about the movie altogether.
The first one being the genre of the film which was strongly promoted as a complete comedy or laugh riot on the lines of few earlier hits based on Punjabi themes such as KHOSLA KA GHOSLA, VICKY DONOR and may be OYE LUCKY LUCKY OYE too. Now yes the film is completely based in Punjab and it does have many comic touches coming at regular intervals. But still they are too less to call it a complete comedy as said in its promos. In fact the total comedy punches in the film are not more than what you have already seen in its theatrical trailers. So instead of a pure comedy, it would be better to consider LUV SHUV TEY CHICKEN KHURANA as a light comical film featuring an emotional touch of a Punjabi family and a childhood love story woven around a food theme.
Secondly, coming to the film being called as “The First Food Film of India”, yes its name says so and the last hour of its script also revolves around the subject. But again its first half never talks about this basic theme and the “Chicken Khurana” actually comes into existence only in its final hour. Hence if you are willing to watch LSTCK taking it as a great (Punjabi) comedy, then you might not get the same in return. But if you wish to see a decent entertaining film, taking you on a realistic tour of Punjab and its people, then you are sure going to find it largely satisfying in most of the cases.
LSTCK has a nice, cool start straight away moving into a remote village of Punjab from abroad. The first half mainly deals with introducing its various characters with some perfect one liners and well chosen cast by director Sameer Sharma. And due to this superb ensemble of actors performing well on the screen, you don’t mind the slow pace before the interval and keep enjoying it despite of having no mention of the actual “Chicken Khurana” in details. In short the film actually starts post intermission when the original creator of the recipe dies without saying a single word and then the leading hero thinks of discovering the dish again with his own efforts.
Hence the whole drama of the film around the ‘Secret Dish’ unfolds in its final 45 minutes only and not before that. Still the viewer doesn’t lose his interest at all because the debutant director successfully manages to keep him hooked in the other entertaining sub-plots of the film which include a childhood love angle, a hidden inter-caste marriage, a rival Dhaba Owner ready to pay anything for the ‘Secret Recipe’, a lazy relative who doesn’t like to work, a psycho don, a fake spiritual guru and an emotional Punjabi family bonding represented with authenticity. Yet, I also found that a few characters could have been exploited more for generating a great comical touch like the Punjabi psycho don, the fake spiritual guru and the rival dhaba owner, especially in its first half.
Having said that, LSTCK actually becomes a decent watch due to its superlative performances from the entire cast lead from the front by Huma Qureshi (of Gangs of Wasseypur fame) and Rajesh Sharma who are both simply outstanding in the film. If truth be told then just take out Rajesh Sharma (as Titu) from the film and see what difference he makes to the overall impact of the project clearly. The exceptional actor remains the central pillar of the script and plays it commendably. Huma once again showcases her hidden talent after GOW and her physical appearance perfectly matches the role she is given.
Kunal Kapoor is pretty decent, underplaying his character well without going overboard. Munish Makhija (as the Don) remains enjoyable and Dolly Ahluwalia (as the fake spiritual guru) is a delight to watch, who ideally deserved a lot more scenes as I felt. Vinod Nagpal (as Khurana) is fine in his silent role and Rajendra Sethi is superb as the emotional uncle and so is Mukesh Chhabra as the budding property dealer. Rahul Bagga impresses being the cousin brother and both Seema Kaushal & Anangsha Biswas are great in their emotional acts. Besides I really enjoyed the few scenes of Vipin Sharma posing as the rival dhaba owner, who performs with perfection.
Another ace in the film is an unconventional yet enjoyable soundtrack by Amit Trivedi which rightly fits into the exact requirements of the film like a ‘T’. One enjoys ‘Kikli Kaleer Di’ and “Luni Hasi’ being played in the background a lot and then wishes to hear them again walking out of the theatre. And the same can be said about the Cinematography and Background Score of the film which strongly make their presence felt as you are watching it.
Summing up LUV SHUV TEY CHICKEN KHURANA is not a great masterpiece made on the similar lines of many previous hits revolving around the Punjabi theme. It surely could have become the one with a better paced first half and more comical punches as expected. But still in the present version, it does turn out to be a nice enjoyable one time watch with a fresh subject, well supported by a superb cast and a catchy musical score.
Rating : 3 / 5
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