Bumboo Review

Bumboo - the name of the film itself should give you an idea what it is all about. In local language, to "bumboo" somebody is to make his life hell, literally. Another commonly used phrase that conveys the same meaning is "waat lagana".

And so, as the narrator says in the beginning, the story is about how one person makes another's life a living hell. Manu Gupta (Sudhir Pande), who has been arrested for a Rs. 12.5 crore scam, has been arrested by the Inspector (Major Bikramjeet Kanwarpal), and is on his way to the Goa Court to reveal names of his associates.

Gupta's ex-colleagues hire the sharpest sharpshooter in town, Mangal Singh (Sharat Saxena), to kill him. A newspaper in Mumbai sends one of its best photographers, Sudesh Sudhakar a.k.a. Susu (Kavin Dave), to capture the inevitable murder of Gupta. Susu is kicked to be going to Goa, because his ex-wife Pinky (Mandy Takhar) lives there.

With such fixed agendas, things are bound to spiral out of control, and that is exactly what happens, especially when the professional Mangal Singh meets with the whining, self-destructive Susu. Will everything go as planned? To know, one has to watch the movie.

And that is the problem. A concept such as this sounds hilarious on paper. It is the execution that always disappoints. Despite the intelligence in the humour, Bumboo ends up being just another small-budget (read: not great) comic caper that is definitely more slapstick than comic. The Indian film industry has not yet made that distinction between the two.

The story is ridiculous, of course, but again, it could have been more amusing if it was shot more convincingly. There are plenty of OTT moments, which miss out on the emotional quotient and concentrate on the inanities. And homophobic moments are no longer funny, if they ever were.

Sharat Saxena is the hero of the film. He plays his part, and his constant grimace/frown, instead of making him more threatening, makes him look like a buffoon. He goes from professional to a nervous breakdown with élan, and carries the movie almost entirely on his shoulders.

Kavin Dave is an able supporting hero. He bungles up wherever he goes, and he cannot comprehend why people find him boring. He has his moments of overacting, but is still watchable. Sanjay Mishra is wasted.

The best chemistry, however, is the one that Major Bikramjeet Kanwarpal and Sudhir Pande share. Cramped in a van, they have to tolerate each other till they reach Goa. Despite the forced gags, the duo manages to pull off some pretty interesting moments.

Production design and music are both below average. Costumes look like they have been hired hurriedly. The jokes fall flat on their faces after ten minutes into the movie. And, as the narrator says at the end, if you did not enjoy the movie, recommend it to the person you have a grouse with - let him get Bumboo­-ed.