Nagesh
Kukunoor
is
back
to
the
genre
he
began
his
career
with
--
a
light
entertainer.
In
his
new
outing,
Bombay
To
Bangkok,
he
goes
a
step
further
and
incorporates
every
ingredient
available
on
the
shelf
that
constitutes
atypical
Hindi
film.
This
one's
not
'same-same,
but
different'
from
Kukunoor's
earlier
films!
But
all's
not
well
in
Kukunoor's
Bombay
To
Bangkok.
The
plot,
though
interesting,
isn't
fine-tuned
into
a
gripping
screenplay.
What
holds
promise
at
the
start
turns
out
to
be
a
below-ordinary
exercise
midway
through
the
film.
Of
course,
Kukunoor's
expert
execution
of
the
material
makes
a
difference
and
a
few
sequences
are
elevated
to
the
watchable
level,
but
the
impact
the
film
ought
to
make
in
totality
is
missing.
In
short,
Bombay
To
Bangkok
lacks
the
solid
punch
of
a
solid
storyteller!
Shankar
[Shreyas
Talpade],
a
petty
thief,
in
desperate
need
of
money,
steals
from
the
local
don
[Naseeruddin
Shah]
and
escapes
his
way
into
a
team
of
doctors
heading
for
relief
work
to
Bangkok.
Unfortunately,
he
loses
the
all-important
money
bag
in
the
chaos.
In
Bangkok,
his
world
turns
upside
down
at
a
massage
parlour
where
he
bumps
into
Jasmine
[Lena].
The
hitch
is,
she
is
all
Thai
and
he
can't
converse
with
her
at
all.
A
ray
of
hope
comes
his
way
the
next
day
when
Jasmine
turns
up
desperately
in
need
of
a
doctor!
Shankar,
posing
as
a
doctor
along
with
the
Sardar
buddy
Rachinder,
jumps
into
this
whirlpool,
while
Jasmine
soon
gets
pulled
into
his
bumbling
adventures
while
running
away
from
the
don
and
his
son
[Vijay
Maurya].
Kukunoor's
films
have
well
etched
characters
and
the
ones
in
Bombay
To
Bangkok
are
no
exception.
There's
a
seedha-saadha
cook
turned
thief
-
perfect;
there's
a
Thai
woman
who
works
as
a
volunteer
in
the
day
and
at
the
massage
parlour
in
the
night
-
perfect
again;
there's
the
don's
son
who
wants
the
money
back,
but
is
more
focussed
on
being
a
Rapper
-
great.
But
great
characters
don't
really
make
a
great
film!
The
problem?
A
few
individualistic
scenes
[Shreyas'
first
encounter
in
a
massage
parlour,
his
prescribing
Viagra
to
all
patients
and
the
sequence
with
Lena's
uncle,
a
hardcore
Bollywood
buff]
do
raise
a
chuckle,
but
when
viewed
in
totality,
the
zing
is
missing.
It's
a
screenplay
of
convenience.
And
that's
why
you
feel
sad
since
Kukunoor
gets
it
right
with
the
characters,
but
not
the
script.
Clearly,
Kukunoor
is
letdown
by
the
writing.
Yet,
it
must
be
mentioned
that
Kukunoor's
comedies
aren't
the
leave-your-brains-behind
types,
but
inclined
towards
the
Hrishi-da-Basuda
variety,
which
is
always
welcome.
The
songs
are
soothing,
with
'Same
Same
But
Different'
and
'Mausam
Suhana'
being
well-tuned
tracks.
Cinematography
is
alright,
although
one
feels
that
Kukunoor
should've
set
the
film
in
Bangkok,
not
at
a
secluded
spot
outside
Bangkok.
The
viewers
do
miss
the
beauty
of
the
metropolis.
Shreyas
is
a
fine
actor
and
he
proves
his
abilities
yet
again.
Lena,
the
Thai
actress,
is
equally
competent.
The
actor
enacting
the
role
of
Rachinder
is
good.
Vijay
Maurya
is
excellent.
Yateen
Karyekar
is
alright.
Naseeruddin
Shah
is
there
for
just
one
scene.
On
the
whole,
Bombay
To
Bangkok
has
a
few
enjoyable
moments,
but
that's
about
it.
At
the
box-office,
not
much
to
look
forward
to!