Coupling My Review Shaadi Ke Side Effects

Director   Saket Chaudhary

Starring   Vidya Balan, Farhan Akhtar, Rati Agnihotri, Ram Kapoor, Ila Arun,  Vir Das

Saket’s debut film “Pyaar Ke Side Effects” was a fun ride, and the casting coup of Rahul Bose with Mallika Sherawat paid off.

After seven years, he returns with a sequel, with a different cast.  Shaadi Ke Side Effects.  A casting coup of a different kind, Farhan Akhtar, the suave metrosexual with the curvaceous  and talented  Vidya Balan.  The promos promised an interesting treatment of a stale premise.  A happy young couple very much in love and what changes when they get married and have a baby.

The first hour of the film is likeable, giving enough moments where you laugh and chuckle at the situations being faced by the husband Sid (Farhan) and wife Trisha (Vidya).  The dialogues are fun and the film flows well.

Farhan is perfect as Sid,  he looks and plays the part well. Vidya is back after  Ghanchakkar,  looking good and giving a solid performance. Both share a good onscreen chemistry and look like a real couple who has spent years together.

The story is predictable, but the situations and the dialogues (Arshad Syed) make it a fun watch.  Seeing a paranoid new mother and a reluctant father trying to keep themselves from almost killing each other over the right side of a towel makes you sympathize alternately between Sid and Trisha. As Sid finds an escape from the pressures of his life with help from his brother in law (Ram Kapoor), he realizes that life cannot be escaped from.

The film is from the husband’s point of view and they have used the voice-over of Sid to underline it.

The supporting cast is aptly cast, with Rati playing Vidya’s mother and Vir Das in a funny appearance as a struggling actor who has done only one ad in years of an obscure product “Panchmola” but is dedicated to his dreams. The surprise cameo is that of Ila Arun who is always a pleasure to watch.

As the film tries to delve into the travails of a married couple, the responsibilities that come crashing down on the husband and how a carefree romantic couple changes into a bickering pair… the married people will find a lot of things to relate to. The part where Sid also gets "Pregnant" is hilarious and such fun to watch. There are many other moments where very real dilemmas of an urban marriage are presented in an interesting manner.

Sadly, towards the last 45 minutes of the film, the situations start becoming contrived, the film loses focus and despite an attempt to add a twist and jerk, one has started shifting in the seat and looking at the watch.  What also doesn’t help are the forced songs in the film. Despite a good over-all narrative, you wish it would end soon. The repetitive actions of Sid in the second half hamper the pace.

But over all, the director is in control and despite the latter dragging part, he has done a good job.

In a nutshell, go for Farhan and Vidya’s natural performances, laugh while seeing a bit of yourself as you choose sides!  Oh and some ladies sitting in the row ahead of mine called up their husbands in the intermission to tell them they loved them!

My Verdict  2.5/5