Welcome Back Movie Review

Story: Two chastened goons Uday and Majnu want to get their sister married. But she ends up falling for a ‘bhai’. What follows is mayhem…

Movie Review: Just when you thought Hindi cinema had evolved, comes Welcome Back, an indulgent potboiler. A sequel to Welcome (2007) by the same makers, here Majnu(Anil) and Uday(Nana) have left bhaigiri behind and become respectable hoteliers in Dubai. Occasionally, the red light in their heads go off like a police beacon, but they’ve learnt to control. Once again, both fall in love with the same girl—a newbie called Chandni(Ankita) who struts around in garish bikinis. Even, while they are planning their own marriages; along comes an inconvenient sister, Ranjana(Shruti). They want her married, before they themselves tie the knot.

Action shifts from Dubai to Mumbai. In walks Ajju bhai(John), who brags that he knows two thousand and sixteen ways of breaking the 206 bones in a human body! So he goes crunch, crunch till your eyes hurt. Before Ranjana and he can exchange rings, Ajay’s past catches up with him. Majnu and Uday have put away their own guns so instead they hire Wanted Bhai(Naseer) a blind don to knock Ajju around. Just bear with me even if you’re head is reeling with the convoluted plot. There’s more gibberish coming. Wanted Bhai has a doped-out son, Shiney Ahuja(Honey) who is in love with Ranjana. Like Ranjana’s brothers, Honey wants Ajju out of the way too. Frenemies now launch a frontal attack on Ajay and his father Ghungroo(Paresh Rawal). Everyone wants everyone dead. And two greedy con women posing as royalty–Dimple Kapadia(Maharani Padmavati) and her bimbette-partner(Chandni)– want everyone’s wealth.

Frankly Anees Bazmee has pushed the envelope in tom-foolery and dumbass `ness’ here. The film is a mishmash of garish sets, mindless action and screeching actors. It’s a ham fest that is comparable to brain dead cinema of yore. The saving grace is, some smart one-liners and heartfelt performances. Anil and Nana must be credited for convincingly playing jokers; kudos to Dimple, Paresh and Naseer for letting go. Surely, the stellar cast has done this film either for a handsome payment or in the sincere hope that it will reign at the box office.