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By Taran
Adarsh, September 7, 2007 - 11:57 IST
 Last Friday, RGV received flak from all and sundry for
attempting a remake of SHOLAY. The venom spewed in
views, opinions, reviews, sms-es… everywhere. RGV has
lost it, was the unanimous feedback.
Yet another RGV offering hits the marquee this Friday
-- DARLING -- but this one is no remake, although it
does bring back memory of two films mainly, GHOST
[which, in turn, inspired a slew of Bollywood movies]
and Bhatts' RAAZ. Though dissimilar, flashes of BHOOT
also cross your mind as you watch DARLING.
It's difficult to slot DARLING in any one category.
It's eerie, it's humorous, it has the song-n-dance
routine [well knitted in the plot], it doesn't belong
to any particular genre. Actually, DARLING is a novel
experience since Hindi films have rarely combined
horror and comedy -- two diverse ingredients -- in one
film. Trust RGV to think out of the box and
fortunately, it works!
The eerie moments before the ghost appears don't make
you break into a cold sweat, but they do make your
heart beat faster. Similarly, there're ample moments
in the narrative [Fardeen, Isha visiting the hospital
to meet Zakir Hussain; also Isha wanting to make love
to Fardeen on their anniversary and the ghost is
watching it all] that are thoroughly interesting. The
final scene, of course, is a brilliant stroke, with
the viewer not being prepared for the turn of events.
 In a nutshell, RGV can heave a sigh of relief this
weekend. Last weekend was dark and depressing, this
weekend should bring in sunshine for this maverick
film-maker.
Aditya [Fardeen Khan] is living every man's dream.
He's got a beautiful, traditional wife [Isha Koppikar]
at home and a stunning wildcat girlfriend [Esha Deol]
at work. Balancing the two women with clever lies, he
gets to experience the best of both worlds.
The going is good. Till his girlfriend shocks him with
the news that she is pregnant. Aditya is cornered. He
has to confess to her that he cannot leave his wife as
he has been promising her all along. His girlfriend is
devastated. She flies into a rage. A brutal fight
ensues, in which she accidentally dies.
Terrified, Aditya disposes off her body and returns
home, thinking that the worst is behind him. But he
couldn't be more wrong. For the nightmare has only
just begun. His wild girlfriend is back as a ghost…
The USP of DARLING is its unpredictability. Had it
been an out-and-out horror flick, you'd have guessed
the sequence of events sooner or later. Had it been
the story of a man torn between two women, again, it
wouldn't have taken much time to guess what's in store
next. But RGV steers clear of predictable stuff from
the start itself.
Although the screenplay is captivating and keeps you
hooked to the proceedings, the only time it takes a
dip is in the post interval portions. Otherwise, the
sequences involving the cop [Upendra Limaye] and his
colleague [a lady called Malati] are excellent. Also,
the sequence when Esha's father breaks down in front
of Fardeen is incredible.
 DARLING may not be amongst RGV's finest works, but it
does rank among his better films. With a music company
[T-Series] producing the flick, it ought to be
embellished with a good score and at least two songs
have already grown popular -- 'Tadap' and 'Aa Khushi
se Khudkhushi Karle'. Amit Roy's cinematography is
splendid yet again. The background score [Prasanna
Shekar] is effective.
Fardeen Khan is a revelation. The actor catches you
with complete surprise as he enacts a difficult role
with panache. Esha Deol is excellent in a role that's
nothing short of a challenge. It would've boomeranged
had it been entrusted to any inferior actor, but Esha
is in terrific form here. This should be the turning
point in her career. Isha Koppikar doesn't have much
to do in the first half, but more than makes her
presence felt in the second hour.
Upendra Limaye is fantastic. And so is his colleague
[a character called Malati]. Zakir Hussain is superb.
On the whole, DARLING is a well-made product that will
find flavor with the multiplex audience mainly. Has
the merits to grow with word of mouth!
Rating:- * * *
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