I didnt have great expectations from Short Kut since I knew first hand and StarBoxOffice was the first to break the story about how it is a rip-off of the Hollywood film Bowfinger. Worse, when you dread watching a film you know will be lame, its intolerable cruelty. This Short Kut will only take you downhill with its canned laughs. Why did Anil Kapoor produce such a film? What did he see in it? Did he think they were making a Bowfinger equal?

Akshaye Khanna plays Shekhar, a talented AD turned script-writer-director. Arshad Warsi plays Raju aka Rajesh Kumar, a much-hated and feared wannabe who takes short cuts to success. Tiku Talsania is Mr. Tolani, a producer, Amrita Rao is superstar Mansi in love with Shekhar. Raju steals Shekhar's script and stars in a film based on it. Chunky Pandey plays Kapoor, Raju's manager The film is a hit and he becomes a star. Shekhar is devastated but decides to take his revenge. He also marries Mansi and becomes Mr.Mansi, a tag he cannot live with. So Mansi leaves him. A twist of events causes Shekhar to make a movie with Raju.

Here are a few things that irked me during the movie:

Shekhar says, "Main tumhare bina adhoora hu" to which Mansi replies, "Mein tumhari ho gayi jab tumne mujhe pukara". It translates to "You complete me" and "You had me at hello", made famous by Tom Cruise and Renee Zellweger in Jerry Maguire. Obviously in Short Kut it doesn't have the same tear jerking impact that it had in Jerry Maguire. Whatever happened to originality?

Also, the scene when the media turns up at Akshaye's house (he stays in a chawl) as superstar Mansi is there, is straight out of Notting Hill. Due to his failure, Shekhar takes to drinking in posh bars. Where did he get the daaru cash?

There is another dialogue: "In the film industry, there are no permanent friends or enemies". We heard that earlier in Page 3.

Arshad is called King Kumar. Who are they making a dig at?

Mansi is a superstar but after marriage, she takes to the kitchen like a fish to water. She knows exactly where everything is and whips up delicious food. Wonder where she got all that training from.

But these are just minor bumps in a film that has been plying its scripts with feeds from other films.

The movie shifts from comedy to drama very suddenly. Everyone is shouting all the time and it's all over the top.

Akshaye and Arshad have the best lines (not too many to remember) but the dialogues are cheap, referring to women's and men's anatomies and there is a slapstick joke where a champagne cork hits Arshad's sensitive area. The script that Shekhar has written is supposed to be brilliant but from what we see of the film he makes, it's far from brilliant. With some unmarried pregnant chick plot and the hero seeing ghosts, it's bizarre and outdated. Maybe there is a pun there, but its not too punny.

The characters burst into song and dance suddenly and the songs aren't great either.

On the bright side, Akshaye Khanna shines in the film: he is funny, exasperated, happy and determined as and when required. He is a charmer. It's a pity we don't see him in films that do justice to his talent. He should get into the big league.

Arshad Warsi is very good too. You actually hate his character. It's rather difficult to play a bad actor and dancer (Arshad used to be a dance trainer) and Arshad passes with flying colours. He cracks you up in the first half and you miss him when he isn't there, because he could be the only reason you entered the cinema hall, hoping for a Circuit like performance from him.

Chunky Pandey is perfectly cast as his chamcha manager and makes along as a sidey.

You can count the scenes Amrita Rao has. I don't know any top heroine who wears only low necks on screen and in real life too. She looks cute but doesn't have much scope to 'reveal' her talent. She tries hard to look hot and seductive by pouting and flaunting her padded cleavage. Blimey, get back to being a bride in waiting girl!

No more movies should be made on the film industry. Luck By Chance and Page 3 are good enough. Since it's based on the same subject, there are similarities between Short Kut and Dhoondte Reh Jaaoge too.

Short Kut makes Kambakkht Ishq seem tolerable. It's a torture to sit through the film and you want to leave before the end credits. Towards the end, Akshaye shouts, "Ye nonsense band karo." That is exactly what you want to tell the makers of the film. Take a long hike, skip this Short Kut.

Janhvi Patel/Hill Road Media