On 26/11 there was an attack on Bombay, but on Dec 12, 2008 there was an attack on all mankind. The terrorist who has destroyed the peace of all Desi Men (especially married ones) is none other than Surinder Sahni (Suri). Yes a character from Adi Chopra’s latest movie “Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (RNBDJ)”. Women after watching RNBDJ are demanding to know why their husbands cannot be more like Suri. Girls are now looking for genuine Suris instead of normal cool guys.
Probably some of the boys that used to get bullied in High School were Suris (Not by me, I am no Bully, a benevolent dictator maybe, but no bully). I am very sure that one of the guys that was on the receiving ends of countless wedgies at my school was a Suri. Personally I never “knew” a Suri in my life, we traveled on different paths. Suris are very quiet, very shy, and as non intrusive as a fly on the wall. A sad & shell shocked Taani (played by newcomer, Anushka Sharma), thanks to a twist in fate, finds herself married to Suri ( an award winning performance by Bollywood’s best ever star actor, SRK), a person that she hardly knows. A person who is grateful that she takes the trouble of making small talk with his office friends. A person whose biggest joy in life is that Taani prepares food every morning that he can take to work.
Any normal guy who finds his wife/girlfriend always moping around, might start thinking of finding a new partner. I am not saying that I would do that, but even I hope that my girl friend lives with the fear of thinking that is plausible. But Suri unlike normal men, changes his hair, his looks, changes everything to bring a smile on Taani’s face. In order to bring happiness to his wife, Suri creates a whole new alter ego, Raj, a cool person as per his definition of cool. Now SRK as Suri is brilliant, but as Raj he transcends brilliance. The two characters are so different that given the fact that Taani hardly knows Suri, and is yet not over from her personal trauma, she fails to recognize them as the same person. I think it is safe to say that SRK as Raj is as brilliant as Johnny Depp was as Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean series. As per the demands of the character, SRK overplays it perfectly. He is loud, irritating and yet very infectious. Cannot think of any actor who could have nailed Raj as well as SRK did.
Credit goes to Adi for keeping everything low key as per the requirements of the movie. Notice that even the painting of Taani that is revealed during the song “Tuj Mein Rab Dikta Hai” is something that could have been done by a local farmer. The Dancing Jodi show also, in keeping with the needs of the movie, is less opulent than similar shows on TV. I give RNBDJ full marks. Although, in all fairness, I have to admit that as much as I like RNBDJ, I liked Adi’s Mohabbatein better. In RNBDJ I missed the arse whooping that SRK gives Big B in Mohabbatein.
See RNBDJ to see how easily SRK switches off Raj for a few seconds (and switches on Suri) when his cheap “I love you” trick fails to create the reaction he was expecting. See RNBDJ to see how effortlessly SRK once again allows Suri to peak through when Taani changes her mind and refuses to elope. Notice the scene when SRK takes a few second to switch on Raj when she visits him at the Garage after the ‘I love you” fiasco.
Above all see RNBDJ to see how Suri even on a full stomach eats the Biryani that his wife cooks for him. See for yourself the consideration with which he knocks at Taani’s door. See for yourself why women are demanding that their husbands/boyfriends be more like Suri. I hope all of this makes you equally mad. A loud and shallow Raj is something that men for years have hidden their flaws behind. It is easy to smell like a rose when compared to Raj. Unfortunately Suri offers no such comfort. Comparison with Suri is fatal to our collective survival. Since Dec 12, fear of being exposed for who we are has terrorized Desi men. Hence, as an American I feel it is my duty to lead this fight against terrorism. I want all men to see RNBDJ and get upset at Suri for putting some wrong ideas in the mind of Desi Women/Girls. Hopefully you will get mad enough to join me and cross over from reality to the screen and beat the crap out of Suri. I would like to beat Suri till he reverts back to Raj/Rahul. Then and only then we can return back to reality and to our comfortable lives and continue being the men we are. Remember, till we beat the crap out of Suri and revert him into Raj/Rahul, women will not leave us alone in peace.
Hence go and see RNBDJ, an amazingly entertaining movie which has sadly imperiled mankind.
