As
a
kid,
one
of
my
favourite
shows
on
TV
was
'Malgudy
Days'.
It
left
an
indelible
impression
on
my
mind,
memories
that
I
cherish
to
date.
When
I
watch
films
set
in
a
hamlet
with
assorted
characters
that
seem
straight
out
of
life,
memories
of
'Malgudy
Days'
come
alive
instantaneously.
That's
precisely
what
I
felt
while
watching
Dus
Tola.
Having
a
similar
storyline
as
the
Malayalam
film
Ponmuttayidunna
Tharavu,
Dus
Tola
has
an
interesting
plotline
and
boasts
of
a
few
endearing
moments,
but
the
outcome
is
plain
and
simplistic.
Also,
the
writing
is
quite
erratic;
it
involves
you
at
a
few
places,
but
is
yawn
inducing
at
most
times.
Final
word?
Lacks
the
glitz
and
sparkle!
Shankar
(Manoj
Bajpayee)
is
the
much
loved
goldsmith
of
a
quaint
coastal
town
Sonapur.
Shankar
is
head
over
heels
in
love
with
the
town
beauty,
his
cunning
astrologer
neighbour's
daughter
Suvarnalata
(Aarti
Chhabria).
Needless
to
say,
Shastri
(Dilip
Prabahvalkar),
Suvarna's
father,
is
opposed
to
the
budding
romance.
Suvarnalata
cooks
up
a
fool-proof
plan
to
manipulate
her
father
into
accepting
the
alliance.
She
convinces
a
smitten
Shankar
to
make
a
necklace
of
not
one
tola,
not
two
tolas,
but
ten
tolas
of
gold
so
he
can
show
Shastri
that
he
can
take
care
of
his
daughter
and
he
is
a
suitable
husband
for
her.
Shankar
puts
everything
he
has
at
stake
and
slogs
day
and
night
to
make
a
necklace
for
his
beloved.
A
shocking
turn
of
events
leaves
Shankar
flabbergasted.
He
feels
cheated,
but
the
truth
is
out
soon.
What
goes
around
comes
around
-
this
is
the
message
that
Dus
Tola
attempts
to
send
across.
But
director
Ajoy
and
the
writer
take
their
own
sweet
time
to
convey
the
message.
The
numerous
stories
and
parallel
tracks
running
concurrently
divert
and
deflect
you
attention,
driving
you
away
from
the
main
plot.
These
include
the
romantic
track
between
Manoj
and
the
dance
teacher
(drab),
Govind
Namdeo
and
his
third
wife's
story
(forced)
and
Manoj's
father's
scenes
(in
poor
taste).
Even
the
climax
is
ridiculous.
If
the
writing
is
patchy,
the
direction
is
equally
inconsistent.
The
songs
gratuitously
adjoin
to
the
length
of
the
film.
Manoj
Bajpayee
is
completely
miscast.
A
younger
lead
man
would've
looked
more
convincing
in
this
role.
Aarti
Chhabria
doesn't
look
convincing
either,
though
she
puts
in
every
effort
to
look
the
character.
Siddharth
Makkar
is
fairly
good.
Amongst
the
plethora
of
actors,
Dilip
Prabhavalkar
and
Ninad
Kamat
seem
real.
On
the
whole,
Dus
Tola
will
go
completely
disregarded
and
eventually
fall
into
the
category
of
those
films
that
arrive
without
a
bang
and
leave
without
a
whimper.
Director:
Ajoy
Cast:
Manoj
Bajpayee,
Aarti
Chhabria,
Siddharth
Makkar,
Pallavi
Sharda,
Govind
Namdeo,
Asrani,
Dilip
Prabhawalkar
Story first published: Friday, October 22, 2010, 12:34 [IST]