Toh Baat Pakki
wogma rating: Watch if you have nothing better to do (?)
A wannabe-Hrishikesh Mukherjee film. It’s one of those simple one-line plots that if told well could be both entertaining and insightful. But, this is neither, mainly because its loud and tries too hard to keep it light.
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Almost each one of us who was/is of the "marriageable" age has encountered at least one well-meaning distant relative who thinks we are the most eligible. The one who takes it upon themselves to find you the perfect life-partner. Well, To Baat Pakki is about one such lady, Rajeshwari (Tabu). No, she's not the eligible one, she's the dreaded relative. Her existence seems to revolve around finding the perfect groom for her little sister. There's lots of room for comedy, but only a tinee-winee bit is explored.
The rating of course, clearly that there isn't much to look forward to in To Baat Pakki but the main character, Rajeshwari fascinated me. Of course, she is the standard, ultra-involved, annoying meddler. But, she is still the older sister. So, though it's never too obviously stated, you see a very heavy tinge of gray in her character. She wants for her sister what she could never get. She wants to live vicariously through her. Maybe, that's what most of those distant relatives mean to do using us, and that is exactly what makes them uber-irritating.
And despite this interesting character, who you keep suspecting will turn the tables, the movie is pretty flat. The other characters barely arouse interest. And these were the exact characteristics of a Hrishikesh Mukherjee film. Common man, with common aspirations. A non-trivial social issue portrayed in a light manner. But somehow, everything in To Baat Pakki looks like a failed attempt.
Except for a couple of the performances. Tabu must be one of the very few women who can pull of comic timing elegantly. She seems just perfect in the role. Interestingly, though age has taken its toll with the lady and she isn't half as engaging to look at as she used to be, this seems to have worked to the character's advantage.
However, this is very little to carry the film through its entire length. It gets slapsticky in some parts, tardy in others. The light moments once in a while manage a half-smile out of you despite some decent performances.
Other than that, the background music is extremely loud, irrelevant and thus distracting. The song and dance sequences follow the patterns of those followed in the 90s but with some decent camerawork to grab your attention. The songs themselves are…well, I don't remember. So, there you go.
Toh Baat Pakki looks at an intriguing aspect of our social lives. But does it so flatly and yet with general ado, that it's more or less a painful watch. So, skip this one, there will be more Fridays and ensuing weekends that will have a movie worth the time.
- meeta, a part of the audience
Thumbs up, by Gaurav Malani, indiatimes : ...The mood intermittently switches from comedy to emotions in the second half where some more scheming by Sharman Joshi would have enlivened the proceedings. ... full review
Thumbs up, Radio Sargam : ...The music, as fun as it is in the car, did not leave such an impact in the film.... full review
Thumbs up, by Sampurn, real bollywoood : ...Toh Baat Pakki comes in the tradition of Hrishikesh Mukherjee entertainers. Pure clean comedy mixed with emotions and a happy ending for all concerned... full review
So-So, by Sonia Chopra, Sify Movies : ...The film is undoubtedly regressive... full review
So-So, by Nikhat Kazmi, Times of India : ...For those who like their films to move at frenetic pace, Toh Baat Pakki may seem a bit laidback.... full review
Thumbs down, by Aparajita Ghosh, Apun Ka Choice : ...suffers from a mediocre script that’s neither funny enough to tickle your spine nor emotional enough to tug at your heart... full review
Thumbs down, by Baradwaj Rangan, Blogical Conclusion, The New Sunday Express : ...at least on paper – the sketch for a magnificent character in Rajeshwari, the über-controlling elder sister that Tabu portrays.... full review
Thumbs down, by Bobby Sing, Bobby Talks Cinema.com : ...Apart from these flaws, the movie is too lengthy and loaded with many uninspiring and un-required songs to put you off. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Taran Adarsh, Bollywood Hungama : ...On paper, the 4-para synopsis of TOH BAAT PAKKI holds promise, but the screenplay, spread over two hours, has its share of hiccups. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Daliya Ghose, Bollywood Mantra : ...Tabu is a treat to watch. Her acting was the attraction of the film. She was as usual at her best. She ruled throughout... full review
Thumbs down, by Letty Mariam Abraham , Buzz18 : ...The movie breaks into songs like the director did not find what else to do to keep the audience engaged. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Deepa Galhot, cinemaah : ...And Tabu, who claims to be selective, thought this would be a good film to do? Just shows how limited the choices are, even for talented actresses who have crossed the bimbette age.... full review
Thumbs down, DNA : ...Shinde's direction holds your attention at a few places only, as the patchy writing lets him down. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Deepa Garimella, fullhyd.com : ...dialogues are written like a 3rd standard Hindi lesson, and you can't even reproduce them in a normal free-flowing conversation... full review
Thumbs down, by Martin D'Souza, Glamsham.com : ...Loaded with a plot, which at first endears, and then irritates, the film chugs along to its inevitable, predictable, boring end. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Mayank Shekhar, Hindustan Times : ...If you’ve been watching reality TV shows (Dare To Date, Emotional Atyachar etc) that also map this part of young India, you may beg to differ on whether such an innocent world still exists. It could of course, in our films.... full review
Thumbs down, Indicine : ...To watch Tabu on the big screen after 3 long years, is a treat. Her high spirited performance as the house wife, loving sister et al is just terrific.... full review
Thumbs down, by Udita Jhunjhunwala, Live Mint : ...The humour verges on the pedestrian.... full review
Thumbs down, Movie Talkies : ...Shinde excels in the first part, where the writing is excellent. But once the second prospective groom enters the picture, the writing loses its bite.... full review
Thumbs down, by Anupama Chopra, NDTV : ... Rajeshwari, whose good intentions are also a little cruel, is an intriguing woman. Tabu is skilled enough to make her both likable and mean but the script doesn’t match her performance.... full review
Thumbs down, by Ashok Nayak, Now Running.com : ... Toh Baat Pakki works to an extent only because of Tabu.... full review
Thumbs down, by Proneet Dutta, Passion for Cinema : ...you cannot make a khichdi movie various hits& expect your film to replicate the success of those movies especially if you don’t have intelligent writers .... full review
Thumbs down, by Raja Sen, Rediff : ...The boys -- Joshi and a clueless Vatsal Seth -- are clearly in the film only to play off Tabu ... full review
Thumbs down, by Shilpa Jamkhandikar, Reuters : ...dated, lame film that pretends to be a family comedy.... full review
Thumbs down, by K K Rai, STARDUST : ...Sharman Joshi, who plays the character of Rahul, exudes charm. In fact, Sharman Joshi seems to have been moving forward after working with perfectionist Aamir Khan in super duper hit flick ‘3 Idiots’... full review
Thumbs down, by flyingrodent, Upper Stall : ...The performances too really fail to lift the film. ... full review
Thumbs down, by SpiceZee Bureau, Zee News : ...most of the comic sequences fall flat and every twist in the life of the characters is predictable... full review
Twitter reviews for this movie are not available.
This page has additional observations, other than the ones noted in the main review.
Parental Guidance:
- Violence: None
- Language: Clean
- Nudity & Sexual content: None, except skimpily clad women in dream sequences.
- Concept: That materialism has no meaning when you are in love?
- General Look and Feel: It is light and mildly peppy.
![[Facebook page of Toh Baat Pakki]](/static/images/icons/facebook_small.png){kind=icon}
![[Wikipedia page of Toh Baat Pakki]](/static/images/icons/wiki_small.png){kind=icon}
![[IMDB Page of Toh Baat Pakki]](/static/images/icons/imdb_small.png){kind=icon}
![[Tabu twitter account]](/static/images/icons/twitter_small.png){kind=icon}
Comments (10)
I dont know what inspires directors to make this kind of movies? what a waste of time and money!
I am 34, and dread going to weddings because I will encounter people who are still asking if I am single nonstop! I will have to see this movie! :)
I nodded off a few times watching this movie this past Sunday with my wife and a couple friends. Our usual All-American Sunday Night Bollywood Movie Group was pared down to a handful, thanks to a sore throat going around and a few of our number trying to make it back home before "Frankenstorm!" hits the US Northeast.
While some of the slapstick was at least fitfully amusing and a few of the performances were quite good, overall I had to look at IMDB several times to ensure myself this was made in 2010, and not 1950. Is this the kind of movie DILWALE DULHANIA LE JAYENGE was made in reaction to - rather, as an actually entertaining version of?
I have to confess we'd never seen a movie with Tabu acting before this (she was in the big dance number in OM SHANTI OM), but it's clear she has major star quality. So what on Earth is she doing playing the pushy wife in what amounts to a not very funny sitcom? I'll admit she gives the character what little shading she has, but it's like watching Jane Fonda in MONSTER-IN-LAW or Barbra Streisand in ALL NIGHT LONG - she's so overqualified, she knocks the entire movie out of alignment (the actress playing the snippy thieving neighbor Mrs. Rai might have been more appropriately cast).
Both Sharman Joshi (who I remember from RANG DE BASANTI) and Yuvika Chaudhary (who I don't remember before this) have promise - too bad they're not in a better romantic comedy than this. There's never any question about which man she truly loves - but it's all kind of television comedy level desire, isn't it? I realize not every actress can be Kajol in DDLJ (whose desire for her man threatened to lay waste to the entire Punjab if unquenched!), but even she had a script that let her smoulder and burn rather than moping about - as you pointed out in your review.
You're also right about the musical numbers - I think AMERICAN IDOL has better songs and dances than this movie did.
I'm really curious how you ended up watching this one @TimELiebe! There are tons of Hindi films to be watched and you watched 'Toh Baat Pakki'. How?
Also, hope all is safe at your end.
@Meetu - I think this was our third choice, actually. We'd already had one disc refuse to play, and the second was that one with Akshay Kumar as an inept sort-of crooked builder from a family of very crooked builders - which we gave up on in disgust about a half-hour in. (When my wife, who has a huge crush on Akshay Kumar, turns down one of his movies, you know it's bad!)
This one was - inoffensive enough to the rest of the room, so.... And yes, Tabu really is incredible - why isn't she in better recent movies than this?
EDITED TO ADD: Never mind, I see you highly recommend her and Amitabh Bachchan in CHEENI KUM - just bought it on DVD from Amazon!
Also got THE NAMESAKE from Netflix - co-starring Kal "Kumar" Penn, no less.
@TimELiebe Aha! So have you gotten around to watching any of them?
Just saw CHEENI KUM, @Meetu - and you were right. It's not gut-busting funny or steamy erotic, but it's very intelligently written and Tabu and Amitabh Bachchan are great together as a pair of smart-mouthed, set-in-their-ways people who sort of drift into being in love with each other in a very comforting, wisecracking way. It's a movie I could easily see married couples loving - we certainly did. :)
@TimELiebe It's a shame that Tabu does films like "Toh Baat Pakki", then, isn't it?
Oh, VERY much a shame, @Meetu! It would almost be better if TOH BAAT BAKKI had been bloody awful rather than just - blah.
PS: I'm still not getting follow-up comments in my e-mail, and nothing's showing up in my Spam filter.... :/
@TimELiebe looking into the e-mail matter. Sorry about that. Hope it'll get fixed soon.
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