Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari Movie Review: When Predictable Meets Over-The-Top

Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari releases today, and while the cast has been having fun off-screen, does the film get the rom-com vibe right? Well, that's for you and me to decide, because it's what everything comes down to. I watched the Janhvi Kapoor, Varun Dhawan, Sanya Malhotra, and Rohit Saraf-starrer at a screening last evening, and here's my honest review of the movie.

Starts off slow but struggles to find its footing

Credit: Dharma Productions

Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari has a basic plot, one that we've already seen in the trailer. Varun Dhawan's Sunny proposes to Sanya Malhotra's Ananya, but she says no, and is all set to marry Rohit Saraf's Vikram. Sunny then goes on to find Vikram's ex-girlfriend Tulsi, played by Janhvi Kapoor, and together, they decide to break the wedding to be with their respective partners. The plot sounds fun, the trailer revealed most of the first half, but you try to catch up and hope that things are about to pick up.

What follows for a majority of the first half is an overdose of songs and dancing and all the OTT wedding functions, which could easily put the Ambanis to shame. Nonetheless, there's little drama, very little romance, and barely there kind of fun moments. While the Bollywood references land every single time and do get the laughs, there's nothing game-changing here, making the plot not just slow, but also very predictable for the most part.

Shashank Khaitan's direction, along with the performances, try to make this film a fun watch, but the screenplay and bits of the story just don't land.

Not everyone's best performance

Credit: Dharma Productions

Varun Dhawan has been typecast to play roles like Sunny, and while the announcement first did have me excited too, but sadly, his performance is a failed attempt. Having done films like Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania

, Student Of The Year, among others, you'd think that he is meant for such roles, but he is better suited to the kind of roles that are age-appropriate (why should only women think about it). Honestly, to think that Varun did a similar film with Alia Bhatt and he is now doing one with Janhvi Kapoor, speaks for itself, doesn't it? Janhvi Kapoor as Tulsi is entertaining, and while she's most definitely not bad, it is the writing that kind of affects her performance in parts. Nonetheless, she's a fun watch. I'd have hoped for the two to have a little more chemistry, though!

Sanya Malhotra is underutilised. I read a comment recently that no one would go watch a film if it was just for Rohit and Sanya, because Janhvi and Varun attract audiences at a larger level, and while that may be true, the audience today also goes to watch good films with good performances. And so, Sanya is definitely one of the better-performing actors among the four. Rohit is playing what's a mix of the guy-next-door turned a businessman, and he did just fine. Of course, he does bring the cute to your screens, and that's his fan service.

Abhinav Sharma as Bantu and Maneish Paul as the event planner most definitely bring the fun and help elevate bits of the movie. Akshay Oberoi doesn't have much to do, but has an interesting but predictable character arc.

A film that plays it too safe

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With all that's happening, you sometimes lose a sense of things. And while I know that this isn't the kind of movie where you make sense to begin with, but there's a point where you need to let the over-dramatic moments pass, and make a film that stirs emotions. And while there are ample moments that get you thinking what's going to happen next or who is going to eventually end up with whom (we know who, but now the how), they are just not enough to keep you absolutely engaged.

My best judgment of any movie I see in theatres, even a film that's a little over 2 hours long, is that there are too many parts that I'd fast-forward through. And if the answer is yes, which might lead me to finishing that film in less than an hour and a half, I feel that the movie lacks the basic ability to keep viewers hooked, which is true, because our attention spans are going down and how.

It all eventually comes down to the film playing it too safe, following a path that everyone would truly predict. However, the climax eventually does get interesting, and the last 15 minutes have you laughing, getting a tad bit excited, and then there comes a happy surprise that everyone's going to enjoy. No spoilers, but think on the lines of Rohit's favourite character so far!

Our verdict of ‘Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari’

Credit: Dharma Productions

In the end, Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari is a rom-com that might get lost in the host of content that's available for us to watch. Sure, it begins on a fun note and ends on an interesting note, but is that enough for it to go watch it on the screens? Well, I am not sure!

If you have a free day and are looking for a weekend watch, sure, go spend some time in the theatre and give it a shot, but don't walk in with too many hopes or expecting some kind of modern-day Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania

, because that's not happening, and even that would've not found a lot of audience in today's day and age.

Movie rating: 2.5/5

Lead and social image credits: Dharma Productions