A Bollywood Entertainer,that is a definite ‘Not Out’:102 Not Out review

Language: Hindi
Genre: Family/Comedy
Director: Umesh Shukla
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor and Jimit Trivedi.
Release Date: 4th May 2018

Coffee Chronicles rates: 9/10

27 years after the iconic Amitabh-Rishi duo shone on the silver screen starring in Bollywood hit ‘Ajooba’, Umesh Shukla gave fans the aptest gift of cinema through ‘102 Not Out’. The quirky name and the overall plot of the film derive its inspiration from the Gujarati play of the same name.

(The following parts contains spoilers that are needed to exact an excellent review of the film)

Basic Plot Summary:

The film tells us the story of Drattatraya Vakharia(Amitabh Bachchan), a 102-year old lively man passionate to break the record of the most aged male to live, set by a Chinese man. Drattatraya (Amitabh Bachchan) lives alone with his son Babulal Vakharia, or Babu (Rishi Kapoor). Babu is a 75-year old man, who believes in living the last years of his life in a set routine, contrary to his father, Drattatrya (Amitabh Bachchan) who believes in living every day like it is the last he would be living.

The initial plot of the movie bears no such dramatic scenes and goes on in a light-hearted and easy way. It is until Drattatraya (Amitabh Bachchan) decides to send his 75-year-old son, to an Old Age home stating his presence in the house and his life as boring and harmful to his overall journey to break the record of the most aged male ever to live. Drattatraya (Amitabh Bachchan) further decides to give Babu (Rishi Kapoor) a set of conditions, that he must abide by to ensure his stay in the house.

Babu (Rishi Kapoor) taken aback by the sudden decision, and the fear of letting go of the things he holds dear in the house, agrees to play along with his father.
As the film progresses, Babu (Rishi Kapoor) goes through a series of changes brought on by the conditions set by Drattatrya (Amitabh Bachchan), in order to free him from the worldly things he finds peace in and to make sure he lives the rest of his life independently, without the aid of his greed stricken, worthless son.

Our take on 102 NOT OUT:

The film seems a little slow initially but soon takes flight as it progresses towards the conditions set by Drattatrya (Amitabh Bachchan). The film is a reality check on the tumultuous relationship between aged parents and their kids. It is a fact that after a while, elderly parents get sent off to old age homes, alone to spend the rest of their lives without being able to see their children.

Umesh Shukla, brought on an unconventional take on the present scenario and turned it into a positive lesson to be learnt from. It is not common to come across films that portray a father-son relationship as purely as ‘102 Not Out’ did. The film does not try too hard to please us with jaw-dropping twists and turns and smoothly transitions us through emotional tear-jerking scenes with hints of laughter and joy.

The Amitabh-Rishi duo who are 65(Rishi Kapoor) and 76(Amitabh Bachchan) in real life, aptly portrayed their roles in the movie and was a treat to the generations who have grown up watching the duo on the silver screen.

The lack of proper focus on Drattarya’s life, left us a little unsatisfied, topped up with the lack of basic dining table conversations and the lead’s ability to pull off the Gujarati dialogues in the right manner.

Key Takeaways:

The film with its brilliant cinematography managed to take us through most of the iconic places in Mumbai in just 102 minutes.

The way the film lightheartedly shows the relationship between parents and their kids and draws upon the greater pleasures of life is something to learn from.

With Drattatrya’s (Amitabh Bachchan) impactful dialogues such as ‘Agar aulad nalayak nikle to use bhul Jana cahiye, bus use bachpan ko Yaad rakhna cahiye’ managed to create a wave of realisation and awe amongst all. Mixed with Amitabh’s free acting and Rishi Kapoor’s appropriate portrayal of an old man’s life, the film rightly deserves the praise.

102 Not Out is an absolute family entertainment best enjoyed by the whole team. The film rightly points and hits the quote that age is, just a number.