‘Govinda Naam Mera’ Review: Lazy, Unremarkable, And Barely Fun For A Film Named After Govinda
Skip this one!
I wouldn’t know how to begin talking about director Shashank Khaitan and Dharma Production’s Govinda Naam Mera except with questions. Was this film some kind of meta-joke on 90s Bollywood movies? A meek underdog with the worst luck possible suddenly hatches a plan that goes well without hiccups, and he manages to defeat every nemesis, including fate because that’s what movie audiences want. I saw An Action Hero do this in a clever way and this one comes nowhere close. Shall I compare thee to a Drishyam then, but with a comedy spin? That would be blasphemous because the whodunnit is barely one. You could see the twist from a mile away. Finally, why did actors like Vicky Kaushal and Bhumi Pednekar decide to do this? The ‘villains’ in this film may have gotten closure after the hero reveals his grand master plan to them. But I don’t think you and I will get one for these questions.
View this post on Instagram
Govinda Naam Mera has Vicky Kaushal playing Govinda Waghmare, a struggling Bollywood choreographer, and son of a deceased stunt master. Kaafi meta, and so far, interesting. His very much alive mother, played by Renuka Shahane, was a small-time dancer in Bollywood; Govinda’s parents’ romance and nuptials were rather filmy because the father already had a wife and son in another town. A majority of Govinda’s peak years, then, have been spent embroiled in a legal property dispute with his stepmother and stepbrother, for a bungalow that his dead father left behind.
Unfortunately for Govinda, he is quite the pushover, who gets bullied by his wife Gauri (Bhumi Pednekar). How such a downtrodden man has a hot girlfriend, a fellow choreographer called Suku (Kiara Advani), is a mystery you might want to ponder, but trust me it’s a waste of time. Suku wants marriage. Gauri is down with divorce if Govinda can pay her back the 2 crores her father spent during their wedding. But until then, our underdog hero must jhelofy being cuckolded by his wife and her boyfriend (Viraj Ghelani). Add to that a cop who’s threatening to kill him, and Govinda can barely catch a break. Until he does.
For the most part, Govinda Naam Mera is a bore. The first half, as it paints the premise about the protagonist’s misfortunes is rarely engaging. The only moment that made me sit up and take notice was a cameo and the exchange between him and our choreographer protagonist. Another meta nod, between a Bollywood legacy actor and Kaushal, who is, quite like his character, the son of a celebrated action director. But other than that, there’s not one funny moment that is memorable, or a song sequence that is engaging, or even a character that you can care about.
Also Read: Avatar: The Way Of Water Review: A Breathtaking, Heartbreaking Spectacle And Proof That James Cameron Is At Home In Water
There’s a stereotypical quality about the characters, and considering the film’s trying to hat-tip to the 90s, I get some of these choices to make the bullying wife look a certain way and the supportive girlfriend another. Even the hero’s sidekick, his cousin, is typical, always supportive, rarely hostile, and will forgive the hero’s every transgression. But to have a main character that is so unlikeable and unidimensional is just lazy.
What’s the point of having an underdog if you write him in a way that can’t get anyone to care about him?
Then there’s the matter of the second half, which is where the elaborate whodunnit unfolds. But the very first twist makes it so evident what’s going to happen next, that it’s now only a matter of you waiting, your patience waning, as the film labours to finish solving its lazy, loopholed mystery. Kyunki aapne toh apne dimaag mein woh already solve kar di hai! We literally just saw Drishyam 2, genius. My biggest problem is with just how easy it is for Govinda to overcome all his problems in one fell swoop with a convoluted plan, the success of which rests on luck and timing. If he really was that smart, how has he evaded good fortune and courted bad luck all this while? His stroke of brilliance is uncharacteristic and not convincing at all.
View this post on Instagram
Because there isn’t much meat on the characters, the actors barely get a chance to flex their talent. This could’ve been a lovely entry into the massy Bollywood genre for Vicky Kaushal. But for a character named Govinda, his has zero scope to be funny. Instead, the humour is relegated to the antics of Bhumi Pednekar’s Gauri, Viraj Ghelani’s Ballu, Renuka Shahane as the paralysed but proud mother, and door-breaking Daya cracking meta jokes about CID. Funny for a second, but completely forgettable. As for Kiara’s performance, the second half gives her something more to do than be the hero’s girlfriend. But again, she’s held back from going all out by the lazy writing.
Also Read: What To Watch This Week Of December 12 To 18: Avatar: The Way of Water, Govinda Naam Mera, Harry & Meghan Volume 2, And More
Verdict
Govinda Naam Mera is lazy, unremarkable, and barely fun for a film named after the comedy genius that is Govinda. When I saw the trailer, I expected at least some of the entertainment that Govinda’s movies would have to offer. But this one comes nowhere close. The cast deserved better.
Why does this film get even one star, then? Solely for that cameo.
Govinda Naam Mera is currently streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
‘Barbie’ Teaser Playing In ‘Avatar 2’ Screenings Has Got Twitter Excited
