Masand's verdict: Lage Raho Munnabhai

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Rajdeep Sardesai

26/11: Terror comes precariously close

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Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Arshad Warsi, Boman Irani and Vidya Balan

Direction: Rajkumar Hirani

Rajkumar Hirani's Lage Raho Munnabhai is the follow-up to the immensely enjoyable comedy, Munnabhai MBBS. Contrary to what you've probably heard, Lage Raho Munnabhai is not a sequel to the earlier film. It is not a continuation of that story, in fact it's not even essential for you to have watched that film in order to follow this one.

Lage Raho Munnabhai is in fact a new episode, a new adventure in the lives of Munna and Circuit, the protagonists of the earlier film.

So in this film, Munna and Circuit do return, and they still play lovable goondas, but they've got a new story to tell. This time round, Munna is in love with a radio jockey played by Vidya Balan who he's trying to impress by pretending he has a deep interest in the values propagated by Mahatma Gandhi.

When he's confronted with difficult situations, Munna finds himself being guided by Gandhiji himself, whose teachings and principles Munna adopts reluctantly at first, but eventually with unconditional faith.

You know some movies just strike a chord from the word go, and Lage Raho Munnabhai is exactly that kind of film. It engages you not because it's got the most imaginative plot - which it doesn't actually - but because the intention of the film is clear and sincere.

It's one of those films that encourages you to laugh out loud, to embrace its characters and to make the journey with them. It's evident that the film's main motive is to give you a good time, but it's commendable that writer-director Rajkumar Hirani chose to weave a message into the story.

In many ways, in fact, Lage Raho Munnabhai is like those fables we read in our schoolbooks when we were little. Those simple stories that came with a moral at the end.

The comparisons between Lage Raho Munnabhai and the earlier film Munnabhai MBBS are inevitable, so let's address that right away. Where Munnabhai MBBS was a plot-driven film, Lage Raho Munnabhai is all about its characters.

Unlike the first film, which had a coherent and strong screenplay, Lage Raho Munnabhai is a sometimes rough-and-tumble ride that's held together by the jokes.

Without mincing words, let me say Munnabhai MBBS was a far more intelligent film, but Lage Raho Munnabhai is the real crowd-pleaser. That's not to say the new film isn't bright — because it is. Only, the intelligence this time has been used in crafting a non-stop entertainer.