Take this call!


The press screening was houseful so I had to sit on the floor while watching debutante director Vijay Lalwani’s Karthik Calling Karthik but it was worth it!

Farhan Akhtar plays the fumbling and geeky Karthik whose life couldn’t be more unfair. He hates his job, his boss and colleagues bully him and the object of his desire doesn’t know he exists. Then a phone call from a guy named Karthik turns his life around for the better initially but takes over his life with the passage of time. People think he has lost his mind. The film won’t be fun if I reveal what happens next.

KCK has thrilling, dramatic, comic and romantic elements. You root for Karthik. You know what Karthik’s problem is all along but you don’t know how the mystery will be solved and that is what keeps you engrossed till a satisfying explanation is offered. Vijay Lalwani succeeds in building up the tension and you get scared every time the phone rings or door bell rings.

The movie has been shot beautifully and the use of light and colour, especially the red light in a grey room and black-and-white montage sequences in the end, are very international. The Rubik’s Cube has special significance in the movie which I will leave you to figure out. The rock background score enhances the thrills and the music by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy is melodious and peppy. They are back in form. The dialogues are witty. The screenplay keeps you interested except some portions where the pace slackens and you get bored. The production design is tasteful and so are the costumes. The titles are super slick.

While KCK is a well-made and intelligent film, it has some flaws. When the characters can’t figure who the caller is, why don’t they get a caller ID machine? That’s the most obvious solution in this day and age. Deepika’s smoking scene was unnecessary and unnatural as she doesn’t share any chemistry with the cancer stick. More so, Karthik’s instant transformation and the way he blackmails his boss is a tad hard to digest.

Deepika Padukone is getting better with every film. After KCK, she will be recognized as an actor. She looks breathtakingly stunning and slim in her corporate avatar. Farhan is an effortless actor. Matching up to him is a challenge that Deepika overcomes naturally. She displays her comic timing in the scene where they have coffee in Khandala and the sequence after Uff Teri Ada and her serious, mature side in the second half. Her chemistry with Farhan is crackling. Their romance is full of sweet and tender moments. Like the mails that Karthik writes but never sends and the way he allays Deepika’s insecurities.

Farhan Akhtar is proving his mettle as a reliable actor with every film. This is his most complex and challenging role to date. He is hopeless, geeky and helpless as one Karthik and cool, dominating, manipulative and confident as the other one. He pulls off both roles effortlessly. The vulnerability he brings to his role is endearing.

Shefali Shah is aptly cast as the supportive psychologist and so is Vivaan as Farhan’s indifferent colleague. Ram Kapoor is convincing and you loathe his character of a greedy and bullying boss.

Karthik Calling Karthik is an entertaining and taut thriller. Vijay Lalwani has thrills and chills as his forte and succeeds in creating many edge-of-the-seat moments along with refreshing romantic moments. Karthik’s call must be answered!

Janhvi Patel/ Hill Road Media