Lootcase
Director: Rajesh Krishnan
Cast: Kunal Kemmu, Rasika Dugal, Vijay Raaz, Ranvir Shorey, Gajraj Rao
The sentiment of the 'aam aadmi' is almost never a miss, especially in India where he keeps wearing himself out for nothing in return. But this guy magically finding a way to change his whole life for the better is, albeit done before, is still everyone's fantasy, and that is exactly what Lootcase director Rajesh Krishnan exploits.
A middle class man Nandan Kumar (Kemmu) comes across a huge bag full of cash while taking a bathroom break at the side of the road, looks around and decides to take it home. However, unbeknownst to him, there are much larger forces at play, which means his simple life won't be the same anymore.
Every other player in this story has a different personality, be it a politician (Gajraj Rao) who annoys his chamchas into action, a don (Vijay Raaz) who is obsessed with the National Geographic Channel or a cop (Ranvir Shorey) you don't know if you should trust. Everyone is looking for that bag, but our protagonist is trying to romance his wife (Rasika Dugal) after a Chinese meal.
One of the strong points of Lootcase is its delicious one liners and jokes, which even though do not compensate for the average script, make the film a hilarious one-time-watch with your family. Writers Kapil Sawant and Rajesh Krishnan know their target audience well, and their actors even better. No joke or a reaction to it looks like it would have sounded better if the other actor delivered it, and that's commendable because the cast is bejewelled with such seasoned comedy actors. There are obviously points where it gets too slapstick, like a dance sequence only filmed as a premise of a joke, or a character introduced only to take a dig at society. Also, because it is supposed to be a thriller too, it should have taken them lesser time to go from point A to B.
This brings us to the strongest point of the film, the performances. I was honestly expecting a Golmaal-esque performance by Kunal Kemmu, but he isn't one toned at all. There is a scene, where after his character gets the 'Lootcase,' he starts asking the bag where it has been all his life, while he sheds a solitary tear. The scene is comical, but the emotion is quite real, if I got a bag full of cash one day, I'd sob like that too. However, every other actor is as good and we sometimes forget Kunal is our protagonist.
Vijay Raaz is as stoic as DK Malik from Dhamaal, which is his funniest role till date period, while he repeatedly asks his chamchas to subscribe to National Geographic and is amazing in his proud dad moment when they actually do. The National Geographic joke seems to be overdone during the film, but has a very smart and satisfying conclusion in the climax. Gajraj Rao as Minister Patil, is so annoying and passive aggressive, and it is so great he isn't playing sweet dad anymore because Bollywood needs to stop typecasting him as one. Ranvir Shorey is always great at his job, and meets all expectations. He is funny and sinister at the same time. My only complaint is even when we see more of the brilliant RasikaDugal than ever, she is written in a one-toned way. It would have been such a delight to see her turning at a crucial point in the film. It would have been so much fun to see a shade of grey in her.
The film doesn't tie all the loose ends, which is either because it's not important to our protagonist or they're aiming for a sequel. If it's the former, they're being brave, if it is the latter, I hope the music is better the next time.
Rating: 2.5/5
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