I have no doubt that being an illegal foreigner in Birmingham is not easy. And if Chal Mera Putt had bothered being primarily about such and not about making tired and shallow Putt-downs, it might have worked as such. As is, this film felt like an endless series of “yo’ momma” jokes (or the Punjab equivalent: “you’re bald,” “you’re fat,” “you’re poor,” “you’re a prime example of a worthless human being”) punctuated sporadically by humane heart-tugging allusions to characters we’ve never met.
The moron count is six (6). Please keep that in mind. When you see the first three zeroes fill your screen, you’re only 50% of the way to pure comic inebriation. Three Indian musicians led by Jinder (Amrinder Gill) live in a two story suburban flat where they spend the majority of their time wondering what they’d do if they had genuine incomes or lives. The trio is introduced to us ordering pizza to be delivered next door where nobody lives. They collect the pizza from the empty apartment on the promise to return, but then they don’t return. Get it? Exactly what am I supposed to feel when you rip off the delivery guy? Surprise? Ecstasy? Shame? Ennui? Look, movie, I can feel for anybody trying to make due in a hostile culture, but stiffing the guy who delivers food? That’s not right.
Meanwhile, two middle aged drifters spend a night on the streets while looking for their connection. That connection, Chaudhary (Iftikhar Thakur), turns out to be the Bill Gates of this septet. Not only does he have an in on a beautiful rental house, he can claim the most successful profession as he’s one of those guys who paints himself gold and acts like a statue for tourists. Dammit, immigrants are always stealing our jobs! Do you know how many people grow up dreaming of being “gold painted statue guy?”
Eventually all six congregate on the same rental property. I never got this part, but when they get together, they all sleep in the same room and share the same bathroom. Their house is 2,000 square feet mostly wasted on superfluous walls. Seems a bit of a construction oversight. And before lights out, they engage in series of putdowns not unlike “The Waltons” were the Waltons introduced to “Def Comedy Jam.”
One thing that really irks me about Chal Mera Putt is this film is directed for hamfisted comic effect. It doesn’t matter that the comedy isn’t funny. It isn’t. There are several scenes in which grown men play stooges: deliberately misunderstanding, behaving as if they don’t realize the man painted gold is their new landlord, pausing for comic effect, the whole 8.23 meters. And when the direction is deliberately condescended down for comic effect, it makes it impossible to appreciate any drama drama that ensues. Comedramas don’t involve slapstick. Lemme put it this way – imagine the Three Stooges as passengers on the Titanic. That’s not a film; that’s an episode of “Family Guy.”
There might have been a reasonable film here exploring Punjab illegals in Britain; they certainly face many a hardship and have sacrificed a great deal just to hang out, steal pizza, and tell “yo’ momma” jokes. What was presented, however, was a misfire from the start. Chal Mera Putt plays like a sitcom pilot desperate for a network to show interest. I’m not BBC, NBC, or CBC, and would happily deport this theater freeloader.
Illegals in the UK are at a loss
Survival means becoming a boss
Punch-lines mar this look
An uppercut of comic hook
This one-two Pun-jab has me right cross
Not Rated, 124 Minutes
Director: Janjot Singh
Writer: Rakesh Dhawan
Genre: Frustrated by thoughtful writing? Try this film out
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: The director’s extended family
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: Anybody who has ever voluntarily shut off a modern American sitcom
