It all starts with the familiar story that we all remember from ‘Fukrey’ (2013). The gang of four—Choocha (Varun Sharma), Honey (Pulkit Samrat), Lali (Manjot Singh) and Zafar (Ali Fazal) are still in the lottery business. However, Bholi Punjab (Richa Chadda) is out of the jail and wants to start from where they left off.
To understand ‘Fukrey Returns’, you don’t need to watch the first part, as the director explains the gist of the previous part in the opening credits.
But the factor that made ‘Fukrey’ such an entertaining watch is totally missing in the sequel which ruins all your expectations that you might have after watching the fun-filled trailer. And here’s why it shouldn’t have returned.
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Deja Vu Or Dejaa Choo?
Call it what you want, it doesn’t matter. The feeling of it hangs throughout the film, as it fails to shake away the effect of the first one. ‘Fukrey Returns’ is nothing new and looks almost the same. But those elements are far less impactful and ruin all the fun.
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Moves Aimlessly
The whole drawback with the film is that it moves from one point to another aimlessly, making us tired of the loose ends. There are scenes when you feel it might grow but it remains intact, making literally no progress at all. It gives you a feeling of an unplanned circus that wants to do so much in so little time.
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A Painful Comedy
‘Fukrey’ was indeed a fun comedy but the same can’t be said for its sequel. Of course, it has its moments but they are just not enough. The only ones who fare well are Choocha and Honey, who will leave you in splits. But rest are pretty disappointing; even capable actors like Richa Chadda and Pankaj Tripathi can’t do enough to hold our attention. If not an original, the sequel could have been some fun but there is hardly anything in the story that can keep the actors going. And now we understand why Ali Fazal mentioned to us in an interview that he didn’t want to do this film, but did it because it was being made.
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MensXP Verdict
Coming quickly to the point, this movie that could have been a full-on laughter riot but unfortunately, it just slogs. Blame it on the box office success of ‘Fukrey’, but coming back with a sequel after a four-year gap makes you realise that ‘Fukrey Returns’ is not even one percent as entertaining as the original. Some things are just best left untouched. Choocha, Honey, and Bholi Punjab return after a hiatus, but it makes us wonder: should they have?
Our recommendation: skip this one and better watch the original again!