| Cast: |
Fardeen
Khan, Anil Kapoor, Abhishek Bachan, Waheeda Rehman |
| Director: |
Anupam
Kher |
| Music: |
Anu
Malik |
Formula is what rules the roost in tinsel town. One
look at Anupam Kher's Om Jai Jagdish is enough to
prove the point. Remember the swinging 60s when social
family entertainers called the shots. Or the 70swhen
feel-good entertainers with universal mass appeal
were the order of the day. The 80s and the 90s saw
violence, stunts and dances dominating the thin narrative.
Kher,
in his debut as a director, doesn't want to take any
chances and has settled for a mega-budget multi-starrer
with the right masala mix to cater to every cineaste's
needs. Yeah, his film is a straight lift from the
70s blueprint. 
Sample
the story — Om (Anil Kapoor) plays elder brother
to Jai (Fardeen) and Jagdish (Abhishek) and is the
epitome of virtue and righteousness. He bundles off
Jai to the United States for higher education and
gives Jagdish's pranks a royal ignore. He dotes on
his mother (Waheeda Rehman) and her word is his command.
The film concentrates on the differences of the three
siblings affects their relationship. Kher has packed
the tale with "some great lilting songs"
and has laid special emphasis on the "emotional
interplay between characters."
Why
did Kher opt for what seems like a typical Mumbai
family drama? "I wouldn't say that really. It's
an Indian family but not the kind of family that one
would expect in a Sooraj Barjatya movie. My family
has
characters who are very much attuned with times and
have shades of grey," he clarifies.
But
Kher does concede that the story of three brothers
is old hat. "My intention was not to make a film
which would consciously ape the 70s formula because
the three brothers are not dream characters or role
models for anyone. What I do feel makes my film stand
out is that all the characters are believable - neither
Anil nor Abhishek nor Fardeen play themselves - they
are definite well-etched persons, I assure you."
