By:
Taran
Adarsh,
IndiaFM
Friday,
March
24,
2006
Karan
Razdan
has
a
knack
for
handling
adult
themes.
If
Hawas
looked
at
a
philandering
housewife,
who
seeks
sex
outside
marriage,
Girlfriend
was
about
a
girl
[lesbian]
who
gets
overtly
possessive
of
her
girl-friend,
when
the
latter
falls
in
love
with
a
guy.
In
Souten
-
The
Other
Woman,
Razdan
tackles
a
piping
hot
story
once
again.
Sure,
this
one's
a
love
triangle,
but
it's
not
one
of
those
mundane
sagas
where
two
women
fight
for
the
same
man.
Souten
-
The
Other
Woman,
the
guy
first
gets
into
a
physical
relationship
with
a
middle-aged
woman
and
then
falls
in
love
with
her
step-daughter.
Conclusion:
Both
mother
and
daughter
want
the
same
guy!
Thanks
to
the
controversies
surrounding
the
film
[the
makers'
differences
with
Mahima
Chaudhary,
which
is
visible
in
parts
of
the
film]
and
lack
of
aggressive
promotion,
you
don't
expect
much
from
the
film
when
the
reels
unfold.
Even
otherwise,
you
expect
it
to
be
one
of
those
sex-laden
skin-fests
that
titillate
more
than
make
a
statement.
But
Souten
-
The
Other
Woman
surprises,
in
parts
especially.
Armed
with
a
bold
premise
--
by
Indian
standards
at
least
--
the
film
never
pretends
to
be
offbeat.
It
follows
the
same
path
that
most
masala
films
undertake,
but
the
execution
of
a
number
of
sequences
is
what
generates
a
decent
impression
of
the
film.
Of
course,
there
are
loose
ends
and
how
you
wished
Razdan
would've
either
trimmed
those
portions
or
removed
them.
Souten
-
The
Other
Woman
would've
been
much
better
than
what
it
is
currently.
To
sum
up,
Souten
-
The
Other
Woman
is
akin
to
soda.
The
moment
you
throw
open
the
cork,
the
fizz
rises
to
the
top
level,
but
settles
down
as
time
goes
by!
Souten
-
The
Other
Woman
tells
the
story
of
Mitali
[Mahima
Chaudhary],
married
to
Ranbir
[Gulshan
Grover],
who
belongs
to
a
royal
family.
While
Ranbir
is
busy
expanding
his
business
empire
and
in
the
free
time
indulges
in
shikaars,
Mitali
leads
a
humdrum
life.
She's
bored
and
neglected.
Enter
Raj
[Vikram
Singh],
the
kid-brother
of
Rajbir's
business
associate
Sumer
[Shakti
Kapoor].
Mitali
is
entrusted
the
responsibility
of
taking
Raj
around
and
in
a
matter
of
a
few
meetings,
the
couple
get
into
physical
proximity.
The
relationship
rests
on
lust
and
continues
to
escalate
as
days
progress.
Smita
[Padmini
Kolhapure],
Sumer's
wife
and
Raj's
sister-in-law,
gets
an
inkling
of
the
affair
and
confronts
Mitali.
But
a
headstrong
Mitali
snaps
at
her
and
continues
to
see
Raj.
Later,
Smita
makes
Raj
realize
that
he
has
embarked
on
a
path
that
could've
serious
repercussions.
Raj
realizes
his
folly
and
makes
Mitali
understand
that
it's
over
between
them.
At
this
point,
Rajbir's
daughter
Sapna
[Kiran
Rathod]
enters
the
scene.
At
first,
Raj
and
Sapna
have
the
usual
tiffs,
but
gradually
fall
in
love
when
they
visit
Goa
for
a
holiday.
When
Sapna
returns
and
confides
in
Mitali
that
Raj
and
she
are
in
love,
Mitali
is
shocked,
but
determined
that
she
wouldn't
let
Sapna's
love
story
have
a
happy
end.
Immediately
thereafter,
Mitali
spills
the
beans
about
her
relationship
with
Raj
to
Sapna,
who
is
crestfallen
to
know
the
truth.
Sapna
walks
out
of
Raj
and
heads
for
Goa
again,
hoping
to
make
a
career
in
fashion
designing.
But
Raj
lands
up
there
and
after
much
persuasion,
Sapna
relents
and
forgives
him.
Mitali
also
lands
up
in
Goa,
this
time
with
a
prospective
groom
in
tow
for
Sapna.
A
helpless
Sapna
cows
down
to
her
parents'
demands
and
is
engaged
to
the
person.
At
this
juncture,
Smita
confronts
Mitali
and
tells
her
to
stop
playing
evil.
There's
an
awakening
and
Mitali
decides
to
get
the
lovers
married.
Simultaneously,
Rajbir
gets
to
know
of
the
illicit
relationship
between
Raj
and
Mitali
and
is
seething
with
fury.
Director
Karan
Razdan
has
handled
crucial
parts
well.
The
confrontation
between
Mahima
and
Padmini
at
the
start,
right
till
the
intermission
point
when
a
shell-shocked
Mahima
learns
that
the
guy
she
loves
is
now
in
love
with
her
step-daughter,
keep
you
glued
to
the
proceedings.
A
vital
scene
soon
after
the
intermission,
when
Mahima
tells
Kiran
about
the
relationship
she
shared
with
Vikram,
is
another
catch-you-unaware
turning
point
in
the
tale.
But
the
post-interval
portions
run
out
of
steam.
The
moment
the
story
shifts
to
Goa,
it
becomes
one
routine
saga.
Even
the
pre-climax,
when
Mahima
goes
into
a
flashback
[her
affair
with
Karan
Razdan
and
his
subsequent
death]
is
tacky,
in
terms
of
writing
as
well
as
execution.
Besides,
a
number
of
sequences
with
Mahima's
duplicate
[was
the
actress
unavailable
for
the
shoot?]
takes
away
the
sheen
from
the
enterprise.
The
climax
also
looks
like
a
hurried
job
and
is
outright
predictable
and
formulaic
[Mahima
sacrificing
her
life].
Anand-Milind's
music
is
pleasant.
'Barsaat
Hai
Lagne
Laga
Hai
Darr',
'Souten
Souten
Mujhe
Mil
Gayee
Souten'
and
'Narm
Honthon
Ki
Narmiyaan
Lelo'
are
hummable
compositions.
The
filming
of
the
three
tracks
is
what
makes
you
remember
them
after
the
screening
has
concluded.
Dialogues
are
impactful
at
times,
but
average
otherwise.
Cinematography
[Aatish
Parmar]
is
excellent.
The
portions
filmed
in
Rajasthan
give
the
film
a
visually
stunning
look.
After
a
number
of
inconsequential
roles,
Mahima
gets
the
opportunity
to
sink
her
teeth
into
a
character
that
does
justice
to
her
talent.
She
suits
the
part
and
most
importantly,
expresses
the
varied
emotions
with
flourish.
Padmini
Kolhapure
is
graceful,
enacting
her
role
with
complete
understanding.
Vikram
Singh
has
a
major
SRK
hangup
and
is
the
weakest
link
of
the
enterprise.
He
looks
ill
at
ease
all
through.
Kiran
Rathod
is
a
fine
actress,
but
she
ought
to
concentrate
on
her
styling.
Her
makeup
is
garish
at
times
and
her
costumes
downmarket.
Gulshan
Grover
is
dependable
yet
again.
Shakti
Kapoor
provides
some
light
moments.
Shiva
is
up
to
the
mark.
On
the
whole,
Souten
-
The
Other
Woman
appeals
in
parts,
not
in
entirety.
In
view
of
the
fact
that
it
has
been
released
without
much
hype
and
hoopla,
it'll
find
tough
attracting
the
audiences.
Business
in
the
Hindi
belt
should
be
better.