A one-watch SRK flick.

Rating: 6/10 (7 January 2009)

This 2008 flick stars Shah Rukh Khan, Vinay Pathak and introduces Anushka Sharma.
It has a very typical beginning, boy sees girl, and of course it is love at first site. Girl, however, is already somebody else's. In fact, she is about to get MARRIED to that person. But that person dies, father gets a heart attack from the trauma and, because he knows he is going to die, he marries off his daughter to his favorite student, a simple, sweet, shy geek, Surinder Sahini. The girl, let us please make it clear, is not forced to marry him, she chooses to, although when one thinks about it...would any sensitive person be able to refuse their dying father's last wish? Taani (Anushka) is heartbroken, though she tries to hide it. Suri seems to understand, and knows that this will not be an ordinary marriage. The possibility of the two having a normal marriage, at this point of time, was something that he could only hope for. So, he picks up a pillow, a blanket and makes a bed for himself up in the attic.
He loves her. He had already made that clear to the audience from the very beginning when he had shyly announced that he had fallen in love with Taani) Though Taani tells him that she can never love him like that, he continues to hope that 'Haule Haule' (Slowly, eventually) she too might fall in love. In the meantime, Taani continues to play the dutiful housewife.
He becomes Raj  a wannabe cool dude- in hope to be what she wants in a guy. And ends up as her dance partner.
How she fails to notice the similarity between her husband and her dance partner is something that will remain a mystery to us and thus, should be left in-argued and tagged as one of the loopholes of the plot.
The other loophole, and a major one at that, is: how could a thin, in-athletic man like Suri possibly survive a Sumo's attack? However, not only does Suri-Man survive, whole and healthy, he only BEATS the 300 pound something Sumo! The movie is a one-watch movie. Shah Rukh has showed that he can pull off any role and can even make us love him as the irritating Raj. The movie is, completely and absolutely, Shah Rukh Khan's.
Vinay Pathak is his usual golden. A very sweet and good performance as the best friend, indeed.
Anushka Sharma is a decent actress. She was, at times, a bit stiff and expressionless, but yet, only she could have pulled off the role as Taani. She is very good find and perhaps, hopefully, will succeed in the Indian Cinema as well as improve as an actress.
Overall: Not a bad watch, despite its loopholes. It will definitely ensure that you keep laughing through out, or else singing along the catchy songs. Purely a SRK candy and can be enjoyed much better on the DVD.
6/10