Dedh Minute Review: Guddu Rangeela

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Guddu Rangeela is a cliché-ridden caper that tries desperately to stay relevant with a misplaced “honour killings” sub-plot, says Aniruddha Guha in his Dedh Minute Review.

Guddu Rangeela features Arshad Warsi and Amit Sadh as outlaws in the north, a template we see in our films every year. You would imagine director Subhash Kapoor being at the helm would at least ensure some newness. But hell, Guddu Rangeela is so full of clichés, even Krrish 3 seemed more inventive.

Kapoor’s first film Phas Gaye Re Obama was an enjoyable indie which had its heart in the right place. His second film Jolly LLB was fairly watchable too. But Guddu Rangeela is not just unwatchable, it’s a travesty.

The film’s only interesting aspect has bad guy Ronit Roy return as bad guy Ronit Roy – a member of a Khap Panchayat. Kapoor tries hard to weave in a forced honour killings angle to make his film more relevant. But if you consider Guddu Rangeela to be a socially relevant film, you probably thought Humshakals was a classic comedy. For example, a few minutes after making a feminist statement in its climax, the film ends with a sexist joke.

Apart from forced references to Sholay, the film suffers from a terrible Ishqiya hangover, with Warsi playing the same fast-talking, witty chap, and Naseeruddin Shah being replaced by, ermm, Amit Sadh, who seems to be the new Pulkit Samrat, only worse.

Guddu Rangeela begins with the catchy Mata Ka Email song, and I wish the movie had just ended there. My rating is a 1.5/5. If you do watch it, you’ll probably say, “Phas gaye re Obama”.