Kapoor and Sons: Five Reasons to Look Forward To

The trailer of Kapoor and Sons is out and as far as I can see, it has received near universal acclaim. It is full of witty situations backed by strong performances and it seems the writer and director have done a good job too. So, here are a few reasons that makes it worth looking forward to.

A Dysfunctional Family Drama
There is something oddly delightful about dysfunctional families. Probably we can relate to it because every real family has some issues or the other. While in the west such dramas are regular, in India we rarely had such films earlier. Family was sacrosanct and the Greta joint family of Sooraj Barjatya films were the epitome of it. Even when they showed warring relatives they ended up to be tearjerkers and the tone was dead serious rather than comic or playful because family is something you are supposed to take seriously. Only in the recent years we have had new age directors trying out this genre. Last year we had Dil Dhadakne Do and now we have Kapoors and Sons.

Director’s past work with Alia
It is director Shakun Batra’s second film. His first Ek Main Air Ek Tu was not s big hit but received reasonable acclaim. I have not seen that one as the star cast was grossly unappealing but I guess I should have given it a try. However, what seems more interesting is that he also directed the AIB video with Alia Bhatt, yes the self deprecating one that came after Alia’s infamous interview which exposed here sheer lack of general knowledge and made her a butt of all jokes. But this skit won her more fans because she was willing to laugh at herself. In a way, it was a clever PR exercise which turned the disaster on its head. So, this dire for knows a thing or two about how to use Alia Bhatt.

Rish Kapoor
In case you did not recognise that actor playing granddaddy, yes it was Rishi Kapoor, under tons of prosthetics. Last few years have been his best years as an actor. As a leading man he was stuck in his own image as a likeable, goody goody character, often playing second fiddle to the likes of Amitabh and Dharmendra. But now he has the freedom to show his range. He has even played the villain now, something that nobody expected to do. He was the only good thing in that disgusting Agnipath remake. So, let’s see what he does next.

Ratna Pathak Shah
Anyone who has seen Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai knows that Ratna Pathak Shah there is no one better that her to play the domineering mother in a urban Indian family. There is hardly anything more that needs to be said here. She has been paired opposite Rajat Kapoor, who I feel, has always been highly underrated actor and more respected as a director. Their chemistry seems crackling in this one.

Fawad Khan
Finally, there is Fawad Khan, finally getting his due in Bollywood! Yes he did Khoobsurat, but that was a relatively smaller film not seen by too many. Nevertheless, if you have any doubt about the Pakistani actors female fandom in India, do check this collection of tweets. I am not a big cannot Sid Malhotra but even he looks decent here, probably forced to up his game in presence of Khan.

Have a look at the trailer here and keep waiting.