Coolie No. 1

David Dhawan has proved beyond doubt that it is impossible to templatise David Dhawan. With the sharp writing and editing missing, Coolie No 1 is but a poor facsimile of the original. As the jokes land with a thud, we are left just with the songs and even there, the OGs clearly win. For those who ask you not to compare the 1995 hit with the 2020 product, my one-line answer is that the makers should not have given us a copy in the first place. This is not a reboot, it feels like a spoof and it is best not to tamper with nostalgia.

But that was a quarter-century back, and it looks like the filmmakers have forgotten that the world has changed. So has Bollywood. When you see Varun Dhawan, who has channelled Govinda in many of his films much better, tread almost the same path, mouthing almost the same lines, there’s no laughter, only despair. Minor changes do not freshness make. The earlier film was set in a village: Karisma was a ghaghra-clad gaon-ki-gori, Govinda wanted to set up a cement factory. In this one, the gaon has become Goa. Instead of a factory, it is a port, and Sara Ali Khan is a city girl in flouncy minis and pointy stilettos. But the silliness which was celebrated at its highest pitch, and the rat-a-tat speed with which the whole thing was executed, something David Dhawan used to do so well, is missing.

Like most Dhawan Sr movies, COOLIE NO. 1 is a joyride laced with several outrageous situations. More of a fun-fest that's aimed at pleasing the hardcore masses. The punches may seem frivolous, but what works is the chemistry between Varun and Paresh. That's the prime reason why the proceedings work for most parts.