Hera Pheri – Start of Comic era in Bollywood

Director: Priyadarshan
Writers: Siddique (
Stars: Paresh Rawal, Akshay Kumar, Sunil Shetty,Tabu,Om Puri,Gulshan Grover,Kulbhushan Kharbanda

Hera Pheri is a film set in Mumbai and is not your run of the mill slapstick comedy that directors like David Dhawan indulge in. The movie is directed by Priyadarshan who proved that after making such wonderful and serious film like Virasat, he can also direct a comedy movie.

This film is a comedy of error. Set in a Mumbai slum where our three protagonists dwell, the movie depicts the hilarious moments created by the simplicity and/or stupidity of the characters. The look of the film is that of an art film. By the look of it, it seems as if it is going to be a really serious movie but it turns out to be one roller-coaster ride of laughter.

The cast of the film includes Sunil Shetty who plays an unemployed guy who comes to Mumbai looking for work and a place to live. He lands up at the house of a simple man played deftly by Paresh Rawal who takes Sunil in. However, there is another person living in the house, namely Raju. Played by Akshay Kumar, Raju is the mischief monger and good for nothing. He keeps on getting jobs and losing them quickly. The story is taken forward by a phone call by the gangster Kabira who keeps on saying that he has kidnapped his granddaughter (sunil takes the call) and wants ransom. This call kickstarts a mayhem. Which ultimately leads us to the climax of the film where the protagonists end up becoming millionaires.

Each and every member of the cast is brilliant in the performance of their roles. Sunil Shetty and Akshay Kumar’s careers were in doldrums when this film released and both of them gave a stunning performance. Especially Akshay Kumar shows impeccable comic timing. Akshay Kumar is considered of the best comic actors of Bollywood these days after performing comic roles in films like Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, Khakee, Aawara Paagal Deewana and Waqt.

However, the show stealer is none other that the unbelievable Paresh Rawal who plays Baburao Ganpatrao Apte. He is an absolute delight to watch. It will be an understatement to say that he completely overshadows the rest of the actors with his marvellous portrayal of a poor Mumbaiyya simpleton. This film changed the course of his career and he is now reckoned as a character actor who adds to the star value of a film.

The music is not that good though. The song “Main Ladka Pom Pom” is hilarious though. The picturization keeps you in splits even though the song is irritating if you only listen to the audio. The real hero of the film is the dialogue writer Neeraj Vohra who comes up with some never before heard one liners. Anyone who wants another example of his great work must watch Aawara Paagal Deewana. In short, a film for every comedy lover. Some clean entertainment. This undoubtedly started a new trend in Indian cinema of comedy films. This movie turned Akshay Kumar and Sunil Shetty as good comedian contrary to their image of serious acting and uplifted Paresh Rawal’s image as an actor with versatility.

 Some good comic scenes from the movie:-

Watch full movie at:-