Gali Gali Chor Hai

wogma rating: Watch if you have nothing better to do (?)

quick review:

Common man Vs. corruption that he has brewed. A loud and tacky story with more distractions than the story itself makes a decent idea, with a common man behaving like a common man, ineffective.

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Director: Rumy Jaffery
Running time: 115 minutes
Genres: Docu-drama
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In stories where the common man is wronged, I've always wondered, why no one tries anything other than the common man's frustration with the system getting to him near interval or a little later? What if he succumbed to corruption, power-goons , etc throughout the film - because that would actually be close to reality, right? Common man is a common man, no Singham or even Dr. Anand? Besides, I had begun to get a tad bored with the typical improbable and pseudo-inspiration, notwithstanding the few well-made ones. The answer is a Gali Gali Chor Hai. If you don't have the inspiring lead character, you'll supposedly need loud side characters, a haywire plot that attempts satire, and a more-or-less boring story despite a decent central idea.

Bharat (Akshaye Khanna) is the common man in question, who crosses a goon-of-a-politician to get stuck in a rigmarole, that starts with a threat from a police constable that he'll be taken into custody, because a thief reported that he stole a table fan from Bharat's house. Yes, you read that right. Just in case, you didn't see subtlety being thrown out of the window with the name Bharat, you will see irrelevant, loud and tacky characters do the do. Not to mention the three 'Of course's and one 'what the...!?' I could've put in that one-line synopsis.

Gali Gali Chor Hai is just that kind of a film. Exaggeration under the guise of satire is used to make a point and beats the purpose by distracting from the point itself. Sure, some of my sentiments as this country's common woman are echoed, but the impact is short-lived. And there is the obvious, in-your-face parallel with the Ram Leela sequences, but again the manner in which they are edited into the main story mar the effectiveness.

The side-story of Bharat, his suspicious wife, Nisha (Shriya Saran) and their paying guest, Amita (Mugdha Godse) are as distracting as the over-acting by most of the cast is. What was the purpose of this diversion from the main story? - is an entirely different question. My only guess is that they were trying to run a parallel between the ironies of how national and domestic systems run. Yes, I laughed at my thought and am giving you a chance too.

The gamut of other bit roles performed by Annu Kapoor, Vijay Raaz, Satish Kaushik, Akhilendra Mishra, Murli Mishra and Amit Mistry all have potential to be interesting but stay half-exposed. Throw in the mandatory item number, love song and one on social activism with no real rhyme or reason and you have a perfectly ignorable film. Tch!

I do feel like applauding what director, Rumy Jaffery and writer, Mumukshu Mudgal have tried here. It is indeed courageous to have central character that surrenders more easily than he combats. But, everything other than that is a little too overbearing and takes improbability and pseudo-inspiration associated with common man stories to the other extreme. Gali Gali Chor Hai made me prefer the other kind of fake.

- meeta, a part of the audience

30 reviewers(?) - 3 yays 9 so-so 18 nays

Warning: clicking on "full review" will take you to an external website that could contain spoilers.

Thumbs up, by Martin D'Souza, Glamsham.com : ...The Bomb Blast angle notwithstanding (not convincing, it could have been interwoven more smartly or could have been done away with), GALLI GALLI CHOR HAIN is indeed an eye-opener.... full review

Thumbs up, by K N Gupta, SmasHits.com : ...Shriya Saran plays her character very well and so also, Mugdha though both have small roles.... full review

Thumbs up, by SpiceZee Bureau, Zee News : ...Akshaye is brilliant as Bharat and Shriya comes across as a demure beauty. ... full review

So-So, by Taran Adarsh, Bollywood Hungama : ...There's not much scope for music in the film, yet the title track [filmed on Kailash Kher] and 'Channo' [filmed on Veena Malik] catch your eye. 'Channo' especially adds a dash of spice to the proceedings. ... full review

So-So, Daily Bhaskar : ...Rumy Jafry has tried to hit the bull’s eye by handling the current and subtle subject like corruption and politics efficiently. ... full review

So-So, by Aakanksha Naval-Shetye, DNA : ...And just like most of the films made earlier, this one too fails to come up with a solution. Though you can’t really fault the filmmaker for that, after all, isn’t this ever-elluding solution, what our own leaders haven’t been able to figure out yet. But this doesn’t stop the audience from feeling just as cheated at the end as they feel cheated by the system at large.... full review

So-So, by Divya Solgama, Gomolo.in : ...Akshay Khanna as a common man is good and does full justice to its character. He is supported brilliantly by Anu Kapoor as a corrupt cop followed by Satish Kaushik and Amit Mistry.... full review

So-So, by Gaurav Malani, indiatimes : ...angs between neo-realism and escapism... full review

So-So, by Shubha Shetty-Saha, MiD DAY : ...Shriya Sharan looks pretty and Mugdha Ghodse looks and behaves like she belongs to some other film. ... full review

So-So, Movie Talkies : ...Though it's an inherently interesting story, where Rumy slips up, is in his characterisation of Bharat as a person content to just go along with the things that happen to him. ... full review

So-So, by Sonia Chopra, Sify Movies : ...Dialogue is often entertaining and insightful. ... full review

So-So, by Avijit Ghosh, Times of India : ...Shriya neatly fits into the part of a small-town housewife, in the process offering the rare sight of a new Bollywood heroine dressed in a maxi, the shapeless morning attire of millions of middle-class women across small-town India. ... full review

Thumbs down, by Bobby Sing, Bobby Talks Cinema.com : ...Akshay delivers a fine act but I still couldn’t find anything new in his common man.... full review

Thumbs down, by Smita, Desi Martini : ...Galli galli mein Bore hai... full review

Thumbs down, by Ameetbhuvan, Desi Martini : ...Wasted Opportunity... full review

Thumbs down, Free Press Journal : ...Eiven satire needs a fir bit of wit and smarts to sustain but this one is lacking!... full review

Thumbs down, by Deepa Garimella, fullhyd.com : ...Annu Kapoor and Vijay Raaz are perhaps the only streaks of brilliance in what is an otherwise shoddy film... full review

Thumbs down, by Rajeev Masand, IBN Live : ...Never smart enough to be described as a satire, it fails ultimately because it's dreadfully dull. ... full review

Thumbs down, by Fatema H Kagalwala, India Entertainment : ...It is a question of debate if Akshaye Khanna suits the role of the meek common man. His character is written naïver than a child and he plays it in his customary overwrought manner.... full review

Thumbs down, by Shubhra Gupta, indian express : ...satire is not Bollywood’s thing.... full review

Thumbs down, by Komal Nahta, koimoi : ...Business rating: 1 / 5 stars ... full review

Thumbs down, by Udita Jhunjhunwala, Live Mint : ...Another inexplicable addition to the script is Bharat’s paying guest Amita (Mugdha Godse), whose presence has no justification in the script except as a means to have a woman in skimpy clothes.... full review

Thumbs down, by Karan Anshuman, Mumbai Mirror : ...The second half, however, resembles a Chatur Singh Two Star or Golmaal Returns - films written by director Rumy Jaffery. It loses all sense of logic and resorts to slapstick. ... full review

Thumbs down, by Mansha Rastogi, Now Running.com : ...Some of the songs in the film too could've easily been avoided in order to give a crisp flow to the storyline... full review

Thumbs down, by Shaikh Ayaz, Rediff : ...lame writing, inept direction and sincere but ineffective acting... full review

Thumbs down, by Shilpa Jamkhandikar, Reuters : ...Of the cast, Akshaye Khanna, Satish Kaushik and Annu Kapoor give it their best but are pulled down by a bad script. ... full review

Thumbs down, by Swati Rohatgi, STARDUST : ...The tracks of Shriya Saran and Mudgha Godse could well be eliminated without affecting the story at all. Even at that Mudgha does a disappointing job and has mostly all her lines dubbed again showing the marked difference of the way she delivers her dialogues and the way it should ideally sound.... full review

Thumbs down, by Sudhish Kamath, The Hindu : ...Jaane Bhi Do… Yawn-o!... full review

Thumbs down, by Priyanka Roy, The Telegraph : ...f you are still in the mood to give Gali Gali Chor Hai a chance, then Akshaye Khanna’s earnestness and Annu Kapoor’s slimy cop act could be the reasons. ... full review

Thumbs down, by Mr Care, Upper Stall : ...like Anna’s movement, the film loses steam very quickly, and becomes a shadow of the ideal it set out to demonstrate. ... full review

31 tweeters(?) - 5 yays 5 so-so 21 nays

tanqeed: Member Reviews: Sanket’s Review - “Gali Gali Chor Hai” is imaginable and very well executed film. http://tanqeed.com/forum/2012/02/04/sankets-review-gali-gali-chor-hai-is-imaginable-and-very-well-executed-film/

sangraaammm: Gali-Gali Chor hai its a very funny and superbbbb movie

pandey: Got a chance to watch Gali Gali Chor hai..Last 20 minutes are the best.May bring tears into a sensible person's eyes.Akshaya Khanna hats off

kunaljp: Gali Gali Chor Hai is entertaining. Akshaye Khanna, very good, as always. Has to be the most underrated actor in the industry

Gymbunnny: "gali gali chor hai" worth a watch

TheSuckularist: Gali Gali Chor Hai has some fun satire if you can stomach the cliché that is small town India.

Karankashyyap: Gali gali chor hai, nice concept,achchhe performances achchhi film :) :) 2n half star :)

IamDocNazir: 'Gali Gali Chor Hai' movie review: Amuses intermittently. Could've done with a far more hard-hitting conclusion! http://bit.ly/w5fvmm

faizankhan383: Gali gali chor hai review, worth watch, hard working by actors..my rating 3/5..one time watch

AasthaAK: Just saw Gali gali Chor hai: "Personally mat lena par yeh system ke muh par ek aam admi ke hath ka chaata hai" Cud've been btr bt nt bad! 

zubinrathod: Gali Gali Chor Hai Movie Review – Wasted By Its Plot ! http://dlvr.it/18xSFB

sp4zee: Gali Gali Chor Hai Movie Review: The film is too limp to pack a punch http://bit.ly/AF17zH #sp4zee

shuebbalbale: Bakwas movie hai gali gali chor hai

raghuvendras: Why Akshya Khanna did Gali Gali Chor Hai movie? What Mugdha Godse and Shriya Saran was doing in the movie? Chhee

pushkarravi: Gali Gali Chor Hai ... One of the most pathetic, directionless movie ever I have seen. Shame on entire cast & crew of the movie.

OhMaraBappa: Gali gali chor hai. Movie badi bore hai

NewsBasket: Mint : Film Reviews | Love you to death & Gali gali chor hai: A black comedy gone awry in choppy execution; a pr... http://bit.ly/xpe6sF

Naadaan_Parinda: Gali Gali Chor Hai : Bad film, but not as terrible as I had thought of. High time Akshay Khanna choses/is given good roles.

MovieReviews_MS: 3/5 Review on Gali Gali Chor Hai Movie by fenil_seta : Not-a-FAN-tastic-Film- - http://bit.ly/wQOglp

manujsharma18: Gali gali chor hai 2 kaudi ki movie

lavdeepsingh: Watched "gali gali chor hai"...... Not impressive must say.

iamkraft: It’s not ‘Gali Gali Chor Hai’, it’s Gali Gali Bor Hai http://www.ignarchives.com/gali-gali-chor-hai-review/

getcinemas: Gali Gali Chor Hai fails to impress! Review at http://www.getcinemas.com/gali-gali-mein-chor-hai-review #bollywood

FridayBO: *StayingAlive- 1.75/5 . *Gali Gali Chor Hai- 1.25/5 . *Journey2 - 1.75/5 . *Chronicle- 2/5 . #FridayBO

CoolkarniVky: "Gali Gali Chor Hai" : TORTURE !! Stay Awayyyyyyyyy ....

Chingum_boyy: Gali gali chor hai movie name must be renamed to the gali gali bor hai

BolegaGossips: Gali Gali Chor Hai is not a picture perfect! http://ow.ly/8S5me

avi_dhagat: watched gali gali chor hai. no clue how did anna stand it. probably he wud hav luved the channo part of the movi..

amolwagh: Gali Gali Chor Hai movie Review - Wasted By Its Plot ! http://bit.ly/zukSVC #moviereview #bollywood

alkasot: GALI GALI CHOR HAI may b topical and well- intentioned but that's jst not enough. Will go largely unnoticed. Review

1PKShowbiz: Showbiz: ‘Gali Gali Chor Hai’, uninspiring, dry take on corruption http://bit.ly/wLjnaH #movie #news

1 readers - 1 yays 0 so-so 0 nays

Not Interested in Watching, by Gaurav : ok

Yay! Thumbs Up, by Business economy world

This page has additional observations, other than the ones noted in the main review.

Parental Guidance:

  • Violence: A policeman beating up a criminal
  • Language: Clean
  • Nudity & Sexual content: A skimpily clad Mughda Godse and Veena Mallik's sleazy item number.
  • Concept: Crime and corruption seeping in every nook and corner of our society - yep, just what the title suggests.
  • General Look and Feel: Loud

Detailed Ratings (out of 5):

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Gali Gali Chor Hai - Cast, crew, links

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Running time:
115 minutes
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Comments (1)

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I liked Peepli Live, Shilpa. I agree with you about the hype, in general. But, I've noticed that if I don't let the hype effect me, I enjoy the movies more. So, that's what I choose to do, ignore the hype.

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