Bollywood review: Rekha's 'Super Nani' displays an odd twist to her 'Khoon Bhari Maang'

Director: Indra Kumar
Cast: Rekha, Sharman Joshi, Randhir Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Shweta Kumar

She might not be anything like the stern, bespectacled woman who props up on the telly to crack the whip on couples with poor parenting skills, Bollywood’s super nani (read: granny) uses only love (a whole lot of it) to reform her rowdy husband and highly obnoxious kids.

It’s a 155-minute-long lecture, disguised as a movie, on how to treat one’s mother.

If Karan Johar taught you how to love your parents, then director Indra Kumar has taken it a step further and put the spotlight on the mommy.

She’s the one who works every day all year round without any rest, or pay, we are told early on. And, that instinctively demands our respect and love.

While there’s no doubt that director Indra Kumar made ‘Super Nani’ with good intentions, he’s unable to translate it effectively. What he leaves us with is an excruciating headache, only because all his characters are busy screeching their lines in a drama that appears heavily influenced by Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini’s ‘Baghbaan’ and Bollywood of the ’60s, when social dramas made great cinema.

Almost sensing this criticism, Vipul Mehta (who single-handedly takes on story, screenplay and dialogue) borrows reference from their heroine Rekha’s filmography and slips in bits from ‘Khoon Bhari Maang’.

So, Kumar’s given a nani, who undergoes a makeover, and transforms from a fairly obscure housewife to a glam doll in a matter of minutes. And, she’s got her spirited grandson and his girlfriend to thank for the step up.

The money and fame aren’t misused, but as a tool to reform her family so they are all reunited in a ‘happily ever after’.

While Rekha looks stunning, without a wrinkle to worry about, she’s versatile and boasts of talent that’s sadly gone wasted in this chaos. It’s when she slips into retro mode and takes on vintage Bollywood that it’s a treat.

Sharman Joshi attempts an American-born desi boy, and puts in too much stress on his twang, or the lack of it, and ungrammatical Hindi but he just doesn’t make it work. He’s honest, no doubt, but it just isn’t enough. Kumar’s little girl Shweta also makes an appearance. Her daddy ensures she looks pretty and even lands her a romantic number in Dubai, but conveniently forgets to flesh out her character.

There’s also veterans Anupam Kher and Randhir Kapoor screaming and over-acting to a level that’s upsetting.

While Kumar might win points for versatility, for shifting from an audacious adult comedy like ‘Grand Masti’ into dictating morals in ‘Super Nani’, his transformation doesn’t appear genuine and doesn’t win us over.
 

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