On the surface, Mrighdeep Singh Lamba’s Fukrey is a bizarre, illogical yet charming coming-of-age tale of four slacker kids — two back benchers who fly kites, a musician without a muse and another who just can't make sense of money or accountancy.
But it is the subtext beneath the surface that makes Fukrey a richer, deeper film about dreams, gambling and hope.
Every time, happy-go-lucky slackers Honey (Pulkit Samrat) and Chucha (Varun Sharma) need money to spend, Honey asks his friend to tell him about last night’s dreams. He then interprets that dream with his inexplicable sense of logic, comes up with a number to gamble on and buys lottery tickets. And it works, they always win!
Sounds implausible? Don't take it literally then.
Fukrey is the story of the misfits. The slackers. Who are all smart in their own way, except not the way their teacher would like them to be. They are street smart, dreamy and dare to chase their dream. So what if they don't have what it takes to make it to college — not the kind of marks needed or the money to pay the capitation fees.
They are not the kind to sit and sulk about it. They are generation ‘jugaad’. Jugaad or what you call it in your part of the country, is all about what you need to do when you don't have what it takes. Backdoor entry, shortcut, setting...
At another level, Fukrey is also the story about the goose that lays golden eggs. Or in the context of the story, one goose that dreams up ridiculous situations and another that interprets that dream in the most ludicrous way possible. The question the makers want to ask you is this: Do you believe in this goose?
Your response to Fukrey has everything to do with whether you believe or not. Do you measure everything in terms of money (“Debit what comes in, credit what goes out”) or is it that power to dream that matters to you more?
Once you accept this premise, you will love every bit of Fukrey .
This is a delightful ensemble that charms us with natural, seemingly effortless performances — Pulkit plays the pretty boy Honey, supremely funny Varun gets the best lines in the film as the dreamer Chucha, likeable Manjot oozes sincerity, Ali Fazal has little to do except strum a guitar, while Pankaj Tripathi shines in a cameo. Richa Chadda has a lot of fun playing the don Bholi Punjaban, Priya Anand as the simple girl next door is a picture of innocence and beauty, while Vishakha Singh makes everyone wish they had an accounts teacher like that.
Fukrey may not be laugh-out-loud funny as Delhi Belly , but the charming subtleties, detail to character and credibility of milieu makes it one hell of a ride.
Hang out with Fukrey . They are fun.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Mrighdeep Singh Lamba
Cast: Pulkit Samrat, Varun Sharma, Manjot Singh, Ali Fazal, Richa Chadda, Priya Anand, Vishakha Singh
Storyline: Four slacker kids need to dream wild, gamble on lottery tickets and win just to get admission into an elite Delhi college
Bottomline: A heart-warming coming-of-age film that entertains with its unusual mix of fantasy and quirky comedy
