Okay,
so
we
have
one
more
'kiddie
film'
hoping
to
catch
the
audience
attention
this
Friday,
after
the
watchable
Toonpur
Ka
Superrhero
last
week
and
the
avoidable
Rama
–
The
Saviour
a
few
weeks
ago.
I
must
confess,
when
I
first
glanced
at
the
poster
of
Bhoot
And
Friends,
I
felt
it
would
be
an
extension
of
Bhoot
Unkle
[2006].
Bhoot
Unkle
as
well
as
Bhoot
And
Friends
are
produced
by
the
same
name
[Aneesh
Arjun
Dev],
feature
the
same
actor
as
ghost
[Jackie
Shroff]
and
feature
Bhoot
in
their
titles.
Furthermore,
both
feature
kids
in
pivotal
parts.
Quite
a
few
similarities…
Bhoot
And
Friends,
directed
by
Kittu
Saluja
[Chain
Kulii
Ki
Main
Kulii;
2007],
is
extremely
low
on
hype.
In
fact,
the
awareness
is
so
minimal
that
you
may
not
have
heard
of
this
one
at
all.
And
even
if
you've
heard
of
it,
chances
are
you
may
not
be
too
willing
to
invest
two
hours
of
your
precious
life
on
this
movie
since
kiddie
films
made
in
India,
generally,
haven't
been
successful
in
cutting
across
the
entire
spectrum
of
movie-going
audience
-
from
kids
to
grown-ups.
As
a
film,
Bhoot
And
Friends
surprises
you
sporadically
[the
animation
in
the
second
half
and
the
pre-climax,
when
the
kids
are
thrown
in
a
dark
cave,
are
absorbing],
but
the
problem
lies
in
the
fact
that
it
uses
the
usual
stunts
and
tricks
[of
kids
throwing
marbles
and
nails
to
make
the
villains
slip
on
floor/road,
kids
combating
an
entire
army
of
villains
effortlessly
etc.]
and
also
corny
and
cliched
jokes
that
look
completely
out
of
place
in
today's
times.
I
am
sure,
even
kids
would
find
those
portions
ridiculously
childish.
Raghav
[Markand
Soni],
a
school
kid,
visits
his
grand-mom
with
his
friends
Roma
and
Igloo.
While
enjoying
their
vacations,
they
accidentally
get
involved
in
hunting
for
a
lost
treasure,
which
is
also
being
sought
and
hunted
by
a
notorious
villain
[Ashwin
Mushran].
The
kids
meet
a
ghost
[Jackie
Shroff]
with
magical
powers.
The
mystery
of
the
lost
treasure
has
to
be
resolved
to
save
human
lives
held
captive
by
the
villain.
Portions
of
Reshma
A.
Dev's
story
bear
an
uncanny
resemblance
to
Bhoot
Unkle,
but
the
screenplay
writing
of
Bhoot
And
Friends
is
a
shade
better.
In
fact,
the
writer
knows
that
a
kiddie
film
ought
to
be
packed
with
fun
elements.
But
like
I
pointed
out
earlier,
it
isn't
an
exciting
ride
from
start
to
end.
Kittu
Saluja's
direction
is
better
than
his
debut
outing,
but
a
better
and
tighter
screenplay
would've
only
made
a
big
difference.
On
the
plus
side,
the
usage
of
animation
[Jackie's
flashback]
and
the
adventurous
finale
[except
when
the
kids
combat
the
villain]
elevate
the
film
to
an
extent.
Kittu's
choice
of
actors
-
the
kids
specifically
-
is
perfect.
Markand
Soni
and
Ishita
Panchal
in
particular
are
natural.
The
kid
playing
Igloo
is
okay.
Jackie
Shroff
underplays
his
part
beautifully.
Ashwin
Mushran
looks
convincing.
Aditya
Lakhia
gets
minimal
scope.
The
villain's
sidekicks
are
most
irritating.
On
the
whole,
Bhoot
And
Friends
is
decent
in
parts,
but
the
problem
is
it
isn't
the
type
that
would
appeal
to
the
kids
completely,
nor
does
it
have
those
qualities
that
would
appeal
to
the
grown-ups.
Besides,
the
lack
of
awareness
will
make
the
effort
go
unnoticed.
Director:
Kittu
Saluja
Cast:
Jackie
Shroff,
Ashwin
Mushran,
Aditya
Lakhia,
Markand
Soni,
Ishita
Panchal,
Akash
Nair,
Tejas
Rahate
Movie
Rating:
Story first published: Friday, December 31, 2010, 14:39 [IST]