Mumbai : Looking at Mere Brother Ki Dulhan, it becomes obvious that the writer-director Ali Abbas Zafar is a film buff and has acquired most of his story telling from the films he watched.
The theme was earlier made as Devar in mid 1960s with Dharmendra and Deven Verma, where one looks for a match for the other.
Imran Khan has an elder brother, Ali Zafar, aptly called Bhaisaab, living in London. He sets the tone for the story by ending his five-year-old romance, thereafter wanting to settle down and, hence, asking Imran to look for a bride for him; he sort of identifies with his younger brother‘s choice! After a mandatory montage of some hardly tolerable faces as prospective brides, finally it is the bride‘s family who reaches him.
The eligible girl is Katrina Kaif, born and brought up in London, who swings between two personas; a guitar strumming, torn jeans bold girl on the move, she is ready to be domesticated for, as she says, if a girl was still single after 25, tongues would wag. Imran has encountered the bold and wild Katrina earlier and as the families are preparing for the wedding, Imran and Katrina come closer and soon realise they love each other.
So far so good, it is all fun and joy. The pair weighs many ideas to avoid the inevitable wedding between Ali Zafar and Katrina Kaif. While she wants to elope, Imran wants to find an honourable way out. From here on, Mere Brother ki Dulhan becomes one tryingly winding film with many attempted comic scenes and cliché sequences like a bhaang song, dug up from old hits. The wedding changes venues as the bride changes too.
Ali Zafar‘s Patel girlfriend from UK is brought down, his romance for her rekindled and they marry, paving the way for Imran-Katrina romance to flourish and since all preparations are made, they should marry too. One thought this was the happy ending but, no, the director thinks he still has one smart gimmick up his sleeve. Both fathers fight, exchange insults and call off Imran-Katrina‘s marriage, adding a senseless extra sequence and stretching the film further.
With a script that can go in any direction, Mere Brother Ki Dulhan is generally a rehash of most things seen on screen before.
Direction lacks inspiration, the treatment is cliché filled; how does one depict Katrina to be a fun-loving, outgoing bindaas girl? Well, she strums on a guitar, gathers crowds around her and generally keeps waving from a car or scooter like a mobile traffic cop!
Musically the film has two decent numbers in ‘O Malang……‘ and ‘Madhubala…‘ Dialogue is routine. Performance wise, Imran Khan passes muster more because of his role than the acting. Katrina Kaif overdoes her chulbuli fun loving girl and is loud at times. Ali Zafar is good in a brief role. Tara D‘ Souza is not up to the mark, Kanwaljit and Parikshat Shahni are okay.
Mere Brother Ki Dulahn is an average rom-com with a very limited appeal.
