Ever since Amir Khan ventured into film production, he has made films like Lagaan, Taare Zameen Par etc., which not only told amazing stories, but also touched few untouched genres. His latest production, Delhi Belly too is no different. It is a shockingly ugly tale on the surface, but is also the coming of age few insane characters, all of them of course belonging to Delhi.

What’s it about : Tashi (Imran Khan), Arup (Vir Das) and Nitin (Kunal Roy Kapoor) are three friends who also share a flat. Inpsite of having decent professional tags like Journalist, Cartoonist and Photo Journalist attached to them respectively, their flat is one of the clumsiest corners of the world. To match it, they are too lazy to keep their flat any better, which stinks of left over pizza, spilt beer and most often of Nitin’s gastric impulses. It is to this place that Sonia (Shenaz Treasurywala), Tashi’s airhostess fiancée, brings a package given to her by an acquaintance, to be delivered to a certain place. But Nitin’s troubled belly ensures that instead of the package what reaches the said address is Nitin’s stool sample! Vijay Raaz, the person waiting for the package, is pissed off and is on the search to get his ‘packet’, at any cost. When Vijay Raaz connects their room to the root of his trouble, all hell breaks loose, almost literally for the trio. They are on the run to save their souls, but have to deal with their personal dramas in the mean while to make any sense out of troubles.

What is Good : The strength of Delhi Belly is its novelty, presentation and how the ugly side of Delhi is shown with utmost care. Delhi is as equally an important character of the film, as are the others. Delhi’s by lanes and streets are as equally explored as are the parties and behaviors of the ‘up town’ circles. And yet this is no serious film. Its characters find creative ways of using outrageously filthiest language ever seen in the history of Indian cinema. The characters themselves are chaotic as chaos could get. Arup is a cartoonist, suffering under an inept boss and dumped by his girlfriend. Tashi is the guy who is being prodded by his colleague Menaka (Poorna Ranganathan) to loosen up a bit. Nitin’s emotional quotient has gone for a toss thanks to his troubled belly, and he excels at his hobby of taking pictures of dead bodies! Menaka is on the verge of a painful divorce, but she seems to take the best advantage of it! However, all find themselves helping each other, in crucial times.

With their characters so coming alive, the actors do extremely good. Poorna Ranganathan is a revelation, bringing her character alive. Kunal Roy Kapoor reminds you of Zach Galifianakis from Hangover, and it is he who comes up with the most inane lines and situations in the film. Vir Das and Shenaz Treasurywala are apt. Imran Khan doesn’t usually look his chocolate boy self, but given the script, he indeed turns out to be the sweetest boy from amongst the characters. Vijay Raaz and his group of honchos, even though they have very few minutes of screen time, create extreme ruckus towards the hilarious climax.

Inspite of creating a benchmark for the number of cuss words used, and visuals that make you go ‘argh’ the script does have moments that work for it.

What is bad: Delhi Belly is heavily inspired by many Hollywood ‘junkie flicks’ though the characters here are far from junkies. Realism, in such films, is only a prop in the story telling, while the drama is never completely believable. Same is the case with Delhi Belly, and it must be noted that the story could have happened anywhere. While the first half of the script builds up the characters and their scenarios, the later part becomes a touch too clichéd and convenient for its own good. As a result it has to depend more on shocking the audiences than on exploring Delhi better. The climax is a touch too convenient and too cinematic, while the concept of boys coming of age in the end is too incredulous and unconvincing. Having used a fair deal of Hindi, the director could have easily added a few more Hindi conversations between the main trio. The film’s core concept works on showing the ugliest side of all characters, situations and Delhi too, and hence might not go down well with few viewers. But for those who won’t get too serious, Delhi Belly is absolute and extreme fun.

Technical Departments : It is very rare that the production designers should get first mention for their work, but Delhi Belly works because of them. The sets are brilliantly real, and the outdoor scenes have been shot in Delhi’s busy bylanes. Ram Sampath’s score is a treat and adds to the drama of the characters. Cinematographer and his crew must have had tough time getting their shots as they have very little space to move or so it seems. Of course, the camera crew successfully showcases Delhi as overcrowded and always buzzing place. The entire crew rallies exceptionally around the hilarious idea and a decent screenplay.

Amir Khan has mastered the knack of finding stunning ideas and people who seem to execute them well too. He must be congratulated for taking another step forward that will inspire many more filmmakers to take the cue. Director Abhinay Deo basks in the trust of Amir Khan, and will be relieved that his film will be accepted more widely, than his debut attempt Game.

Bottomline : Delhi Belly is a must watch for all youngsters, and for all those interested in Cinema. However, be warned not to take any family member with you, unless they won’t mind Indian cinema’s filthiest dialogues ever.