Nanu ki Jaanu, Review: It’s a nu nu

What can you make of this mishmash that is as puerile as its title? Whatever you make, it’s all a nu nu, or no no, to spell it right. Misguided, miswritten, misdirected and misacted, the film revels in flouting the basic tenets of mise en scène. If the Tamil/Telugu original of this remake was worth remaking, the makers of Nanu Ki Jaanu have done it great injustice, beginning with changing the profession of the protagonist from a violinist to an extortionist. Imagine a ghost, of an accident victim, taking residence in the chimney of the man who took her to hospital, and going on to set things right in the life of the small-time crime boss.

Nanu and his gang acquire posh properties in NOIDA, near Delhi, on rent and then blackmail the owners into selling them to them for a pittance. They pull out guns, use threats of violence, kidnapping and pressing of false charges of molestation to force the owners to sign the ownership transfer papers. Selling off one property, they start looking for the next victim. One day, while driving, Nanu tries to answer the mobile phone placed on the back seat. Suddenly, he realises that there has been an accident, and stops his car. There is a scooter lying on the road and next to it is a girl, who seems badly injured. Nanu takes her to hospital. While being taken into the emergency room on a trolley, the girl suddenly wakes up, lunges at Nanu, holds his hand, gives him a pendant, and collapses dead.

From her father, Nanu learns that her name was Siddhi, her mother had passed away earlier and that Siddhi was a highly loving and greatly talented girl. He owns an ice factory. The loss of his only child devastates the father. Soon afterwards, strange things start happening in Nanu’s house. Beer bottles break, openers disappear, the messy bachelor pad becomes neat and tidy, and more. He becomes convinced that his house is haunted. At the same time, he begins to soften professionally, and starts going slow in his extortion racket, almost turning over a new leaf. This foxes his gang, and they make fun of him when he tells them that his house is haunted. To prove the merits of his case, Nanu takes the gang home. Making a sledgehammer argument for its existence, the ghost lifts Nanu’s second-in-command Dabbu and twirls him around. Argument settled. There is a ghost around.

Nanu is written by Manu (Rishi Chadha), and based on Mysskin (also spelt Myshkin)’s Tamil work. Lead actor Abhay Deol and Manu struck a fine partnership in Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!, among the most successful films of Deol. That seems to be the motivation behind Deol signing Nanu ki Jaanu. Manu played a betel-leaf vendor (Paanwala) in Oye, and returns to play Dabbu in Nanu ki Jaanu. Sadly, it will be very hard to find a single scene that stands out. Even in banal situations, imaginative dialogue has rescued many a forgettable film. Wonder why the man who has the following films in his kitty--Kya Dilli Kya Lahore, Ekk Deewana Tha ,Yeh Saali Zindagi and Aisha—found his pen plummeting.

Director Faraz Haider (War Chhod Na Yaar) treats several of his scenes as patch-work. They lead nowhere and are cut when somebody looks one way or the other. Pisaasu does not seem to be the only inspiration. A long time ago, we had Casper, the friendly ghost. More recently, in 2016, the Kannada film U Turn tackled the theme of a fatal accident victim who eliminates traffic offenders, though in this case, the ghost was anything but friendly. Scenes that appear suspenseful, like the chimney repairer entering the abode of the ghost, peter out. None of the neighbours, and even Nanu’s mother, who arrives unannounced from a neighbouring city, come across as credible. Most characters are half-baked or uni-dimensional. It is often unclear where a scene is heading—comedy, horror or melodrama.

Abhay Deol (Shanghai, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Dev.D , Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!, Manorama Six Feet Under) kicks open doors, totes guns, joins an item number, hugs an old Sikh victim of his in a Gurudwara and promises to return the flat, attempts dead-pan comedy, but, in the end, the script has very little on offer to do him justice. Patralekhaa (Citylights, Love Games, Ishq Uncensored) is the girl on the scooter, the corpse in an ice block and the ghost up the chimney. Looking like a severely toned down version of Divya Dutta, she has the most moralising and preachy lines in the film. It’s hard to imagine such a fragile persona as a ghost. Incidentally, she has a quaint name, with Patra meaning letter and lekhaa means written. Letter-written, Patralekhaa!

Brijendra Kala is the neighbour who is Nanu’s source for beer every time his stock runs out. Rajesh Sharma as the girl’s father hams aimlessly. Manoj Pahwa makes a forceful mutton dealer-cum-strong arm man. As the candy maker (halwai), Mahendra Shriwas is made to overact. Himani Shivpuri imparts quiet dignity to her role, which comes from nowhere and goes nowhere. In support are Reshma Khan, Sapna Chaudhary and Gurmeet Singh. And what does one say about Manu Rishi Chadha and Dabbu? Potentially comic scenes fall flat, and his antics don’t help the cause one bit.

Rating: * ½

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fL15eJ6bU_k