Movie Review: 99

After a humongously long hiatus of 6 weeks, we finally had a new Bollywood release this week with ‘99‘. Now, to be perfectly honest, they could’ve released a remake of Deewar directed by one Mr. Gopal Verma today, and I still would’ve wanted to see it. For want of a change in scenery from the elections and the IPL, more than anything else, but still. Having said that, what the movie gains with a desperate audience, it also loses with viewers who watch it without high expectations. So, does Krishna D.K. and Raj Nidimoru’s 99 face up to the challenge? Or does it, in fact, lay a case for 6 more weeks of sabbatical from the interminable dross being churned out from the industry these days? Let’s find out.

The Story

99 tells us the story of Sachin (Kunal Khemu) and Zaramud (Cyrus Broacha), two friends who live off of the money they make from duplicating SIM cards in Bombay. A pre-title-credits sequence worth of circumstances later, they are left in debt to a local bookie by the name of AGM (Mahesh Manjrekar). Something he makes them pay off by hiring them in his crew of henchmen. In the meantime, we meet Rahul (Boman Irani), a compulsive gambler from Delhi who, while in Bombay for a conference, bets big with AGM on a match that his team eventually loses. Already in debt with Kuber (Amit Mistry), a bookie from Delhi, Rahul has just 3 months to pay AGM off. A period at the end of which our two protagonists are packed off to Delhi to take care of the “vasooli” . Once in Delhi, another unfortunate set of circumstances leaves our boys owing the boss… BIG! And the only way they’re going to get out of this one is with the help of Rahul and Pooja (Soha Ali Khan), the floor manager at the hotel they’re staying at.

Why is it called 99, you ask? Well, the most matter-of-fact reason would be because the entire story is set in the year 1999 against the backdrop of the whole match-fixing scandal during the India-South Africa ODI series. On a slightly deeper level, our protagonists are people whose lives have never taken off, as the narrator explains. They all have ideas of greatness and fulfillment in their minds, but have never been able to make that leap across that 99, over to a century that everyone remembers you for. And that, folks, is basically what forms the crux of this fictional tale formed around some very real events.

The Good

99 marks a fine turn by an incredible ensemble cast, led impressively by Kunal Khemu and Boman Irani. There’s nothing much to speak of there in terms of star power, but what they all manage to bring to the game collectively raises the bar to a higher level. You’d almost think I was talking about the Rajasthan Royals here, wouldn’t you? Well, keeping in mind the theme of the movie, that’s actually not a bad analogy. A special shoutout here to Amit Mistry and Mahesh Manjrekar, who add a lot more to the offering than just comic relief. Technically, the movie is flawless and kudos to the two directors for that. Packed with witty references to post-1999 trends and events, the dialogues are sharp and, indeed, the writers are the real unsung heroes of this comic-thriller.

The Bad 

The movie isn’t without its flaws, though. With only 2 songs to speak of, one of which is a background score that flows with the narrative, you’d think that 99 would have a short run-time. But at 2 hours+, this is hardly a breezy watch. While I wouldn’t go so far as to calling any of the sub-plots unnecessary, some of them could have used with a little judicious pruning. This includes the climax, which meanders along a lot longer than deemed fit. The timing of the release, in the middle of IPL season and an unresolved multiplex blackout, is a big detriment that the movie’ll have to overcome. Although, the former is something that I think word-of-mouth might actually turn into a plus. Also, the story is fairly predictable…. which isn’t as bad as it sounds, really. Because 99′s real strength lies elsewhere. 

The Verdict

99 is a slick turn in a growing genre of semi-fictional movies, along the lines of last year’s sleeper hit “Oye Lucky, Lucky Oye”. Even if you watch it for the performances alone, you won’t be disappointed!

Rating: 3/5